Power of friendship
by HPFan1999
Summary: What if Harry Potter had a friend, before attending Hogwarts? How would it have changed the course of events? Rated M for a reason, short mention of self-harm in chapter four, can be read without that. First fanfic so reviews are certainly appreciated! No pairings, might continue until book seven. Will have irregular updates. Disclaimer: I own nothing but my own character.
1. Chapter 1

**The power of friendship**

**I've never written anything like this, but I've read fanfiction. This idea sort of came to my mind, and I couldn't resist. I'm not a native English speaker and I don't have a beta reader, so there will probably be some errors in this. I'm willing to continue this, but as I'm attending university, updates will be weekly – or at least, that's my goal. I'm planning to continue this until book seven, if I make it. Anyway, enjoy the first chapter!**

Harry didn't like school. It wasn't that the subjects where hard or something, or that he found it to be boring like most of his classmates. On the contrary, the breaks where the worst. Because then Dudley and his friends ruled. And Harry was their favourite punching bag – if they caught him, for Harry was thin and small of statue, but fast. Today would be no different. Not that it had been any different, ever since they could walk. Dudley's parents, Harry's uncle Vernon and aunt Petunia Dursley, did encourage Dudley sometimes, though they never hit him themselves - save his aunt's frying pan every now and then, of course, but he always ducked it. Because of this, Harry could never connect with his year mates. As the bell rang and Harry walked into the school building, he wondered what chores he would have to do this week (as it was a Monday, he would get a list he should finish before weekend, and he knew better then to argue or worse – not to do them at all). He eyed Dudley carefully when they walked through the corridor, making sure to keep his distance, with the ease that comes with experience. He looked forward to going to school without Dursley, but that would have to wait until he turned eleven, and he was only seven now.

They all came into class and greeted their teacher, miss Jennings. Harry didn't like her (like all teachers, she saw what Dudley did and did nothing or worse, thought it was all his fault, no matter how many times he told them it was not). She didn't like him because she knew he wasn't "working up to his potential" as she called it. He didn't tell her what would happen when he did how the Dursleys would punish him for being better than Dudley – not that would be hard. Nobody would ever care for him, and it wasn't too bad, or at least not worse than an orphanage. That was what he kept telling himself, every time he was locked up, alone in the dark of his cupboard. Today's routine was interrupted with a polite knock on the door, and with that the headmistress entered. She accompanied a young girl, with short black hair and a pair of rectangular glasses. She was rather short of statue and rather thin, but not unhealthy thin. Her eyes looked at him, and he stared into a pair of light-blue orbs, watching him and everything else with sharp interest. The headmistress introduced her as Jane, originally from south-France. Miss Jennings tried to point her a seat in the front of the class, but she just shook her head and sat next to him in the back of the class. Harry noticed that during the welcome speech she hadn't said a single thing. Maybe she was shy. He turned his attention back to the math lessons miss Jennings was teaching.

Harry was trapped. As per usual, Dudley got bored during the break at noon and sought out Harry. He hadn't been paying attention, wondering why the girl would start the term in November and, more importantly, why she hadn't been verbally answering miss Jennings questions but instead wrote the answers down in a red book and showed it. And now, he would pay dearly for his mistake.

"Been thinking, freak?", said Dudley. "Staring at that girl in class, eh? She is not your deal, though. Wouldn't want to be associated with you. After all, your own parents drove drunk because you're such a piece of…"

Of what, they would never know (but Harry could guess), because the girl had not only managed to appear out of the shadows, but also had pinched Dudley on the nose. Shaking her hand calmly, she looked at him and dared him to get up. Dudley decided to stay on the ground and moaned. She pulled a blue book and wrote something, then showed Harry: "Don't listen to him. He's sprouting nonsense, though I do have the impression that's a habit of his… Jump aside when you're finished reading, if you would be so kind?". He wanted to ask her why, but at the same moment, she turned around with an annoyed face. Dudley had signalled to his friends to get her, while she had been distracted. Harry decided to clear the path for her, as she had asked, but stayed nearby. He didn't know anything of fighting, but maybe he would have to be a fast learner. The girl – Jane, he remembered - seemed unfazed at Dudley and his three friends, slightly cooking her head to the side. Pierce made his first move and tried to punch her, only thing he missed and fell onto his face. The other three now charged, but Jane ducked, placed a few fists here and there and took Dudley out seemingly without effort. The other two backed off and ran when she moved towards them. Snorting, she turned to him, and wrote: "You haven't answered my question".

"I'm fine. How did you know that?", he asked. Experience, she wrote back.

"Thank you. I'm Harry Potter.", he said, while wondering how exactly she had gotten experience in this, without voicing the question.

Jane was writing: "nice to meet you, Harry Potter."

"Nice to meet you, too, Jane.", he answered.

He looked up and saw a teacher approaching (for the life of him, he couldn't remember her name, as she was new in the school). Dudley's friends were behind her and Harry bit back a groan.

"What's going on here?", she asked, eyeing the scene before her with a strange look on her face. It was a strange sight, Harry had to admit. Dudley and his gang were rarely beaten, not because they were so good, but because nobody tried to fight them of. He noticed Jane raising her hand, as if to answer a question in class, and gesturing to her red book again. She was writing fast it appeared and showed the book to the teacher.

"So, they insulted you, miss Davidson? And when mister Potter tried to intervene, Dudley stepped wrong and fell on his face? Is this true, mister Potter?", she asked, now frowning outright. Behind her back, Jane was nodding, so he played along.

"Then why do these two here tell me that you attacked them, miss Davidson?", she asked. Jane was writing again, showed it to the teacher, who nodded and dragged the boys of for their punishment. Based on the look on Dudley's face, he would regret this, but for now he only felt joy. For once, Dudley would be punished… But why? What had she told the teacher? He decided to simply ask, and she showed him. She had written that they had tried to lure her into a fight, by insulting her late parents, that Harry had stepped in between, that Dudley had made a move but fell. Underneath that, she had written that she, a small girl in a big new school, in a country she didn't know, wouldn't want to make a fight on her first day.

"That's true, though. You have made an enemy today, Jane", Harry said.

"He won't come after me. And besides, I will not let anyone get beaten while I can help it.", she wrote.

"Your name doesn't sound French to me", Harry said suddenly.

"The headmistress said that I moved from south-France to Britain, not that I was born there.", she wrote.

"Why don't you speak?", he asked curiously.

"Because I'm grieving.", she wrote back after a hesitation.

The bell for the end of the break rang.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's note: first, thank you for reading! Feel free to share remarks or point out errors, I'll be happy to address them. Either PM me or leave a review, it's certainly appreciated. There is going to be a point of view change in this chapter and it will happen more over the next chapters. If put the length of a view things in centimetres and in English feet, and I hope you will be familiar with either. O, I still don't have a beta reader. Now, here's chapter 2.**

**Chapter 2**

The coming days Harry kept an eye on Jane Davidson – he owed her as much, he thought. She was right in Dudley's friends not coming after her. Instead, they picked on her verbally, which she pretended not to hear. She seemed to enjoy math and science classes and wasn't bad at languages either. That was not unsurprising, as she had told him she only moved here in September. She had moved to France when she was a year old, after the murder of her parents. The people who had taken care of her, where not the best of parents as she was removed from their care. Social workers had found that the sister she remembered lived in Britain and was adopted. Those foster parents had been contacted and had taken her in, where she had met her two-year older sister Lara. As she didn't remember her parents' surname, nobody could contact any family for her, and she had simply taken over her foster parents' surname. She lived on a horse farm not so far away from Privet Drive (many people in their street rode a horse, they found that they looked important and noble like that). He hadn't learned that from her, though. Harry had listened in on teachers talking about her. That on itself shouldn't be a problem, but the fact that Jane had seen it was. She hadn't talked to him, and Harry was too afraid to try to talk to her. Only thing was that he couldn't forget how she had stood up for him, that she had lied for him and taken the effort to get to know him. She had been the only one to ever do that. In class, Harry kept himself busy and he had his chores when he was home. But now, as he was walking home, nothing could keep him from thinking too much. He looked at his watch and made a decision.

**Jane's point of view**

Jane sat outside, in the cold, and sighed for what felt the hundredth time. The truth was, she had enjoyed her conversation with Harry – only finding out that he had been listening in the day after on the teachers had made her upset. It reminded her forcefully of her first foster parents, and that was never a good thing. And she held it against him, which was unfair. It had been then days now, and she felt he had been punished enough, certainly because it wasn't fair. She would have to talk to him… Then she heard the noise of hooves – the fast thundering of a horse on full speed gallop, the shouting of people indicating that something had happened. She began to run up the hill. The next thing she saw made her feel like her blood had turned into ice.

**Harry's point of view**

Harry rounded a corner and looked at the horse farm. It housed around fifty horses, with enough stables, paddocks, and a training ring on the inside and the outside. He wondered what he would say, and even if she would want to talk to him – she had been quite angry, for quite some time. He began to walk down the path leading to the front door of the house. It was a nice house, in the typical type of old landlord houses, but clearly modernised. He dearly hoped she wouldn't turn him down, Jane had certainly been nice to him. And it was nice to talk to someone who didn't shout at him all the time. He had been looking down, studying the ground, but now, as he heard hooves, he looked up – a horse was running towards him, people shouting at each other. In the brief second before the horse was there, Harry noticed that one of them had a torn rope. The other part of it was still on the horse's halter. But there were more urgent problems now, because the horse was still coming his way, and the people where too far away to do anything.

**Jane's point of view**

The horse, or actually the pony, a Welsh cob measuring 150 centimetres (*about five English feet), was running straight at the very last person she had been expecting to see. For one moment, Jane dearly hoped that her eyes were deceived. But they weren't. She first thought the pony (Sleipnir, she remembered) would walk straight over Harry. On the last moment though, he stepped out of harm's way, and she breath out a sigh of relieve. But today's surprises were not over yet, it appeared.

**Harry's point of view**

Harry felt like everything had happened in slow-motion. The horse had walked past him in a blur of black coat. But it had stopped, as the fence that parted the farm from the road was at least 2 meters (*six and a half English feet). He shuffled slowly towards it – Harry had figured he had the best chance of catching it, as the others were further away. But the horse turned, and he looked into panicky, brown eyes. He swallowed. Harry had never been close to a horse before, and this one was taller than he was and weighed probably a lot more. Neither of them moved, as they stared briefly at each other before Harry averted his eyes. He remembered Dudley's lessons: never stare at a frightened horse. He didn't dare to move. Suddenly, the horse walked over and snorted. Moving slowly, he grabbed the rope's end dangling from the halter. The horse didn't budge.

"O, thank God. You alright? The rope broke, I should have checked it… Can you bring him to the little paddock over there? It seems he likes you.", the person who still held the other end of the rope said. Harry nodded; how hard could it be? Jane and her foster mother where standing there and showed him how to properly release a horse into a paddock. She introduced herself as Myriam Davidson, a tall woman with brown curling hair. He thought he saw her exchanging a look with Jane, when he introduced himself.

"Sleipnir is one of our horses. We have three groups of horses here: some are here to be trained, some are rescued from auctions, some are here because their owners find they have a problem. For example, Belle here," Myriam said, while pointing to a white pony," has been refusing to go near farms. It turns out that she had a problem with a donkey when she was young, so we try to let her learn from positive experience, instead of hitting her until she complies. Sleipnir was rescued from an auction. People thought he didn't want to work, that he was lazy. But he is a Welsh cob caught in the wild, and they used an old method to make him tame: they hit him until he surrendered. He learned nothing then to fear humans. We try to show him there's another way, and if one day he is ready to leave, we find an adoption family for him. If he isn't, he stays here. The problem is, none of us could get trough him. Sleipnir seems to trust you, if you want you can help him. Of course, we will help you. What do you say?"

"I would like that, madam.", Harry said. "None of that, I'm Myriam.", she said. "I'll leave you two now, there is paperwork to do."

"I would like to apologise, Jane." Harry said, while Myriam walked away. "I shouldn't have listened in; I should have asked what I wanted to know."

"I should apologise too; I was reminded of my first foster parents and I took the shock of that out on you. Are we good now?", she wrote in her blue book.

"Yes. What's with the book colours?", Harry asked.

"The blue one is for friends. The red one for school. The black one I've been carrying now is filled with memories of my parents. You now, I've some brain damage and my brain made connections it wasn't supposed to make. I remember everything ever since, and since I was a year old, that's a lot. I've had a hard time accepting that I don't remember my parents so well, but I do remember the title of an article in the bag of a random woman I passed on the streets. I can also see emotions.", she wrote.

"Isn't it hard to see emotions, in a big crowd like at school?", Harry asked.

"Well, yes. It takes exercise to block that out. That's why I only started in November.", she wrote.

They walked and talked together until around 6 p.m., because the Dursleys would come back from their evening out around nine, and Harry still had his chores. But that's not what he told her, he told Jane that his aunt and uncle didn't want him to cross the streets so late at night. She simply nodded, and Harry released his final surprise: he signalled in British sign language: "_See you tomorrow?_". And Jane, with tears in her blue eyes, nodded and smiled for the first time.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's note: as you have seen, I have uploaded last chapter earlier then I promised. The aim is to update weekly, on Saturdays. However, if the chapter is finished earlier, I will simply post earlier. I can't promise that this will be always, hence the aim for weekly updates. Some of you might wonder if I'm going to fill up all the years since Harry was seven (when the story started). I won't do that; I have neither the time nor the inspiration for that. I will skip a few years ahead, to June. There will be certainly two more chapters (this one included) before Harry starts Hogwarts (and who knows, Jane too?), but perhaps I have to split those, if they are too long. Which brings me to the next point, how is the chapter's length? Not too long or too short? I have the idea they are rather long before I upload them, but then they seem suddenly a lot shorter, so I don't really know… I would like to warn you that part of the reason this is rated M will appear in this chapter. Now enough of my babbling, on to chapter 3.**

**Chapter 3**

It has been two years since they first met. Harry thought of Jane as a dear friend, and he knew her foster parents Myriam and Henry quite well. Last night, they had had her party for Jane's ninth birthday. Harry had gone straight home after that (the Dursleys didn't care when he was home, as long as the chores where done). It had been only him, Myriam, Henry and Lara . Jane wasn't a social girl, mainly because she had trouble keeping other's emotions out of her system. If she was to long near them, she absorbed them as her own and she was still learning on how to keep them out. It worked well with few people, but crowds where difficult. Harry had helped Sleipnir, and they had found him a nice, loving family that looked for a riding pony for their experienced daughter. Jane had trained horses for them before, so she knew the girl quite well and she had a calm nature – just what they were looking for. But it hadn't stopped after Sleipnir: Harry had liked the experience, and decided to continue on it. A year after Sleipnir's departure, a foal was born. It had been weak and as Jane had just caught the flu, she hadn't been allowed to take care of it. There simply was too much work for the rest of them to constantly keep an eye on her, so Harry had offered to do that on all hours except school hours. The foal made it, and he named the black mare Nyx (they had been studying the Greeks on themselves). He trained her, just as Jane trained her white mare Artemis (she had bought her at an auction, saving her from the butcher). Meanwhile, Jane had not only thought him horseback riding and training a horse, but also fencing, arching and surviving techniques – they both enjoyed going camping on the weekends, and could hunt a balanced meal of meat and wild plants*. Harry was no longer afraid of Dudley, because he could know fight back. Other than Dudley though, he didn't hit kids just to hit them: he agreed with Jane that those techniques where for self-defence purposes only.

He woke early in his cupboard, from a sharp knock on the door of aunt Petunia and cooked breakfast. After that, he collected the dishes and started cleaning them, until the doorbell rang. He went to open the door and found two police men behind it.

"Harry James Potter?", one of them asked. As he nodded, the other one asked: "can we come in?". Harry let them in, knowing something was of.

"Do you want a guardian present?", the first one said. As he slowly shook his head, another alarm bell was ringing in Harry's head – because the policeman had asked about a guardian, not a parent. Did they know his parents where death, because they had looked into it; or was he simply being paranoid? And why would he want someone present? The conversation only went downhill from there, and not even twenty minutes later Harry was sitting in the back of the police car. An hour later, they reached their destination.

Harry entered the hospital, feeling dazed. Apparently, Jane and Myriam had set out in the middle of the night, in a storm, to save a horse. The had put it in their trailer behind their car, but on the way home a tree had fallen on it. When they were found, nine hours later, Myriam had already been dead because of extensive blood loss. Jane had been alive, but had had a cardiac arrest and her condition was critical. Henry was sitting in the waiting room, looking as bad as Harry felt. Lara was pacing and had apparently been doing so for some time now.

"Any news?", Harry asked. "She is in surgery, but it's bad.", Henry answered. "She has broken six ribs, one has punctured her lung, there's a bleeding around the heart but they couldn't find the source, there's a swelling in the brain and she had broken several bones. The only good news is that her spine and neck don't seem damaged. She might very well not even survive the surgery."

"I'm sorry Henry.", Harry said, swallowing past the lump in his throat. And with that, he settled down, waiting, hoping and praying.

***I do advice against eating plants when you don't know enough of them, and even then, I wouldn't advice it. Let this be noted, as in this chapter Jane and Harry discard that rule and though they had extensive studies of plants and Henry (Jane's adoption father) has had an education as a doctor and a vet, I still wouldn't advise it. If something is "don't try this at home", this is. I just felt it added to the story.**

**It appears I'm going to have to split at least this chapter in two. Probably going to have to do the same to the chapter that's would be coming after this one, so that will be another three chapters – oops, no four chapters before Hogwarts. Also, I'm not going to include parts of the series in here (copyright and all that), but I will make a not in italics where in the timeline we are. I've just been thinking I might continue this until cursed child, but as I'm not there yet, I will try for the original seven books first. As this chapter ended on a cliff-hanger, I will upload the second part of this as soon as possible. I'm aiming for Friday, it might be earlier. Thank you for reading!**


	4. Chapter 4 - a longer chapter

**Author's note: I don't really like cliff-hangers, but I felt the chapter would be too long otherwise, or I would have to cut too much of it. There is a mention of self-harm in this chapter, I've put a warning where it begins. Now, on to the next chapter!**

Harry was just thinking about Jane, how she had started speaking again a few weeks ago. But mostly, they used sign language. Harry had learned it to be able to communicate like equals, though it had taken him quite some time. Jane had signed him multiple times she appreciated it and after one tiring session, she had just said it aloud. He had been filled with joy, but pretended like it was nothing, because she wouldn't like the attention. He looked up when he saw a nurse.

"Mister Davidson?", a nurse asked. Harry looked up, and caught sight of the clock (he had been trying to avoid it, nothing made waiting worse than watching the clock all the time). They had been waiting for six hours.

"Yes?", Henry said.

"Surgery is about to finish. We managed to stabilize your daughter. The broken bones are set, she will be having a few transfusions and we have removed the blood from her chest. We couldn't find the source of the bleeding though, so we will monitor her closely. The bad news is that the MRI* showed a haemorrhage in the brain. We will be keeping her in a coma.", the nurse said. "I'll come and collect you when you can visit her."

"What is a… a… what was it… in the brain?", Harry asked.

"A bleeding.", Henry said. "It's bad news, because the blood can't go anywhere because of the skull. They will drain it to remove the blood, but the fact remains that the pressure in the skull was elevated. That means that the brain has been under pressure, which is bad because it can cause part of your brain to die."

"So, she is not out of the woods yet?", Harry asked. Henry nodded, looking solemn.

Fifteen minutes later, a nurse appeared and said: "I'll bring the family to Jane Davidson now".

Harry was going to remain seated (after all, he wasn't family), but Henry told him to come along, as Jane considered him family, and she wouldn't want him to be alone now. When they entered the room, Harry gasped. There were so many machines, beeping and buzzing, that he nearly didn't dare to go in the room. There were monitors everywhere. They sat down and waited again, Henry and Lara holding her hands and Harry reached out after a few hours, too.

Fourteen days later, Jane was still in a coma. Harry had been visiting her every day, between school, working at the horse farm and the chores the Dursleys wanted him to do. He had never had so much work in his life. On the morning of the fifteenth day, he let breakfast burn – not on purpose, but because he had been trying to clean the living room at the same time, while thinking about his math homework. Without breakfast, Harry left the house, when Henry's car stopped before him. It wasn't a school day, so they went to the hospital. Henry must have been tired too, because he fell asleep thirty minutes after they arrived. Harry sat there, listening to the machines. After all those days, he knew what they were displaying and what values they should show. They were giving her less pain killers know, hoping that she would wake up. The matter of brain damage was still there, but Harry tried not to dwell on that.

He looked at her face and nearly screamed – she was staring back, squeezing his hand. Pushing a button to call a nurse, he squeezed back and dimmed the lights. Because of the tube in her airways, she couldn't talk. "Jane, can you hear me? Can you squeeze my hand twice if you hear me?", he asked. Two squeezes. For the first time in days, he smiled. When the nurses entered, Harry stepped away from Jane's bed.

When the nurses where finally done testing, Jane was still awake. He walked over to her and smiled. They had removed the tube that had helped her breathing, so she could speak now.

"Myriam… What happened?... I remember… going to save… that horse. He was… in a stable… rotten wood… But then, nothing…", Jane asked.

Harry felt a lump in his throat. She couldn't remember. God, how would he explain this? He took a deep breath and said: "Myriam… She didn't make, it Jane…" Her expression was heart-breaking; he saw the deep grieve on her face. He added, hoping against better judgement that it would soften her pain: "she didn't suffer, Jane." It was a lie, but he hoped it would help her giving it a place. Because he knew she would blame herself, for not seeing it was dangerous, maybe even for mentioning the horse, for being uncareful, for not seeing what would come. She started crying, silently. And maybe that was worse then when she would cry her heart out loud, the fact that she did it silently was such a Jane thing to do, Harry fully realised on that moment what he could have lost. But from now own, he thought while holding her, he would always be there for her. When the shaking of her body finally lessened, Harry looked at her face, wanting to tell her it wasn't her fault – but it was too late, she had fallen asleep.

A week later, Jane was steadily improving in the hospital. Harry had joined her in her revalidation – her doctor had found that is was highly motivating if someone was doing the same exercise, so that she would want to do better. They where sitting in her room now. Jane was physically doing better, but mentally it was going worse and worse. She had lost her parents, she had been abused by a first pair of foster parents and know her second foster mother had died, only she couldn't remember it. There was a knock on the door, when it opened there were the two police men that had come to talk to Harry about the relation between Myriam and Jane. And then they dropped a bombshell.

"Jane Davidson, you are under arrest under suspicion of the murder on Myriam Davidson. You have the right to remain silent, but anything you do say can and will be used against you. You have the right to have an attorney present before and during questioning, now and in the future. If you can not afford an attorney the state will provide you with one. Do you understand these rights, miss?" One of them said.

Jane looked totally shell shocked and her knees buckled. The other agent took it as an attempt to flee and brought out the handcuffs. They took her away and Harry realised he was wasting precious time. He dialled a number he had never dialled before and began to move.

"And?", Harry asked. Peter (the family attorney) had just come out the interview room.

"Apparently, someone cut through the tree that fell onto the car. Jane had a fight with Myriam and they took that as a motive.", he said.

"That was… a disagreement between parents and their child, this ridiculous!", Harry said. Peter put a hand on his arm. "I know."

"Can I see her?", he asked.

"They brought her to jail, but she is refusing to see anyone.", Peter said.

"But why?", Harry asked puzzled.

"She doesn't want anyone to see her like that. And jail is no place for a child", Peter answered.

"She doesn't belong there!", Harry exclaimed.

"I agree. But they have nothing – she will be free before you know it.", Peter said consolingly.

"But if they have nothing, why arrest her in the first place? She couldn't run, she was still injured. Then why?", Harry asked.

Peter didn't answer that, but Harry knew – they must have more against her then they let on. And Peter knew, but Jane had told him not to speak to Harry, so it was bad news.

-Enter warning for self-harm-

Another two weeks passed. Harry nor anyone else got to see Jane, except Peter – and only during interrogations. That on itself would have worried Harry, but he had also overheard a conversation between Henry and Peter. Jane wasn't doing well, the interrogations with accusations and the fact that she couldn't remember anything made her wonder whether she had done what they said. Peter was worried she would crack under the mounting pressure. Harry had thus decided to try and talk to Jane again, they hoped that he would get through her – but when he and Peter arrived, the police station was in chaos.

"There is an uproar going on in prison.", a police officer said. "We have calmed everyone down, but Jane Davidson is missing. But she can't escape."

Harry watched as Peter was walking away, talking to the police officer. They hadn't even noticed him, which was good. He didn't think Jane would want to escape – depending how you defined that, though… He watched around and found the stairs he was looking for. While he mounted them, he dearly hoped he was wrong. But he wasn't. Jane was standing on the rooftop of the building, clutching her arm and watching the skyline.

"Jane?", he asked. He was still hoping there was an explication for this – that she was simply escaping the turmoil. But she wasn't, as she turned around to look at him he saw the blood dripping from her arm, he saw the sharp piece of glass, stained red with her blood.

"You shouldn't be here. I'm not safe.", she said. Her eyes were vague, as if she wasn't focussing. He wondered whether she still knew where she was, she looked dazed, as if she wasn't really here.

"You won't hurt me. I know you – you won't do that.", he answered.

"You do? … Strange, I don't even know that myself.", she said.

Harry didn't know what to do or say. Normally, she would never jump – not under his eyes. But nothing was normal now. She looked thin, older and tired. He dearly wanted to approach her, but he didn't know how she would react. The choice was made for him. Behind him, the door burst open and several police officers came out, pointing their guns at Jane. Harry stepped between them.

"Jane, look at me. We can get out of this. I need you. We need you. Neither of us can do this without you.", he said. She looked at him.

"I can't… I'm a monster, god I'm a monster… I did… I don't even remember it. How can I not remember this? What kind of horrible person… I should be dead, you know. I'm a ticking bomb, I'm not good for everyone…. Let this end here, I can't…", she sobbed. "It will be better like this", she whispered.

"No. My life without you won't be better. Think, Jane! Think of Lara, of Henry. Their lives will not just continue when you're gone. They won't get over you, just like that. Think of me – how am I supposed to tell them… That I couldn't save you?", he asked.

"Why?", she cried. "All the death around me… All because of me. I know it, how can anyone stand to look at me, after all I have done? This can only stop… When I stop…"

"Jane, look at me. Come here. We will work this out, we will make sure everyone is safe.", he said.

She stumbled, but didn't fall. She still hadn't recovered from the car accident.

"Do you promise, Harry James Potter?", she asked. There was a bit of life back in her eyes, but they became dull again while he was watching.

"I promise", he said walking down the last meters. He just caught her before she fell.

\- Stop warning for self-harm-

Harry was back at Jane's place. Jane needed time to recover and rest from the blood loss. Harry knew he was supposed to go lay down for a while, because he felt utterly exhausted. But Jane needed him. He walked in her room slowly. Ever since she had been arrested, he had been avoiding it. But now, she needed his help, and he needed the laptop she had given him for that. It was her old one, but it still functioned all the same. He looked around. Nothing had moved, everything was the same. There was still a collection of books on the left, a bed, a bureau with some empty black boxes on it with names stamped on them, and then a bookshelf. Jane liked reading a lot.

He sat down behind the desk and started his computer. Harry wondered whether he should really set through with his plan, maybe it would cause more harm then good… But then he remembered how Jane had looked on that rooftop and he decided he would rather see her alive and upset with him then dead.

Five hours later, Harry was sitting on the street. He swayed slightly on his feet and giggled. He had been singing for thirty minutes under a ladies' window, and walked away now. Maybe she didn't like his singing. A patrol car rounded the corner, and stopped. He giggled more loudly to himself, muttering silently.

"Who are you, son?", one of them asked. Harry didn't respond.

"I think he is drunk, Ben.", the other one said. "He certainly smells and acts like it."

" 'M not drunk… all the beetles are wandering away, you should stop them", Harry mumbled.

"I recognise him now, he stopped that parent murderer from jumping today. Let's take him to the station.", the other one responded.

Thirty minutes later, the cell's door clicked behind him. Harry smiled – part one of his plan had worked wonderfully.

*** Magnetic resonance imaging, a technique used to visualize soft tissues (in this case the brain). Opposite to X-ray imaging, that is very good at visualizing hard tissue and makes use of more dangerous radiation. I'm not a doctor, so I have no idea if this is realistic. I just now the term and what it does.**

**I warn against self-harm mentioned in this chapter. I'm not really good with words, but seriously, if you feel like doing this, talk to someone. It helps.**

**For next chapter, we will be rounding off this part of their life, or so I hope. If it works out, there will be one pre-Hogwarts chapter left, and then on to Hogwarts. Next chapter is aimed for Saturday, hopefully sooner.**


	5. Chapter 5

**This has turned out way longer then intended… Looking back I should've split chapter three later in the story, but I'm going to leave it like it is now. On for the second last chapter before starting Hogwarts! Sometimes I'll change the story a bit more, when Harry starts Hogwarts. As for the self-harm of last chapter, it won't be mentioned again. I would also like to mention that sometimes things need to get worse before they get better.**

Harry got up to his feet. He stopped pretending like he was drunk and listened. He still had half an hour to fill. He thought about what he had discovered at Jane's place. He had hacked the police system – he had been an ethical hacker for over a year now, and the trail would lead them through so much servers they would never find him. Harry had found out they had been questioning a lot of people, only never arresting anyone, there were no records of crimes they had committed. The persons that had been questioned turned out to be neighbours and friends of some of the cops working there, so Harry had been looking into the records of those meetings. Apparently, a group of ambitious officers had been questioning Jane all the time, save three hours a night and her official interrogations. No wonder she looked deadly tired. Their interrogations techniques weren't soft; they might not use physical violence, but they certainly used things not suitable for someone her age. Harry had seen how they planted the image of her killing Myriam slowly in Jane's head, until he couldn't stand it.

Half an hour later, Harry got to his feet. The guard was being changed now, which meant that the reception desk in the detention wing was empty for a short period of time. Harry took a last look at the lock and praised himself lucky Jane had thought him about lockpicking – for escape purposes only, she had said. It wasn't a hard lock to pick, because normally there would be an electronic lock but Harry had shut it down before he got them to arrest him. He escaped his cell without effort and walked through the corridor with all the courage he could bring himself to, his heart pounding in his chest. He hoped nobody would ask something if he was confident enough, but luckily, he met nobody on his way to Jane's cell. He quickly unlocked the door, which went easier than his – after all the doors where to keep people in, not out.

"They let you out, Jane", he said. He had thought about telling her the truth, but she wouldn't want to come with him if she knew. "We are allowed a short walk at night, so they can keep a better eye on us, with less people on the street", he lied.

"Where are we going to?", she asked without interest.

"Just for a walk", he answered.

"Okay then…", she mumbled. She was mumbling other things, too, but he couldn't make them out. He edged her on, they only had a short time. He felt calmer now he was actually acting then before, while he was only waiting. As they went to the desk, an alarm went off. Harry smiled to himself, his plan had worked out perfectly. The wet towel he had set up burning under a smoke detector had sent the thing of and as he had soaked everything with water before he went for Jane, the fire wouldn't spread. They simply walked out the police station and disappeared in the darkness. Four hours later, at eight o'clock, the police raised an alarm about the escaped prisoner.

Harry and Jane kept walking for the next hour or so and then they were where he had wanted to be – at the place of the accident. Jane seemed suddenly awake.

"Why did you bring me here?", she signed.

"Because you need to remember. You can't go on with your life if you don't, I know that, so I brought you here. To understand what – what happened.", he answered, watching her closely.

She looked around.

"It's coming back… My memories of the accident…", she signed after thirty minutes. "But I don't remember cutting the tree…"

And with that, she started crying for the first time. Harry held her closely until the sobs subsided and her breathing deepened while she fell asleep. He brought her to a cave nearby and started a fire.

(Meanwhile at Jane's place)

"How do you mean, my daughter disappeared?", Henry asked, with a feeling of dread. Jane had just tried to kill herself yesterday, and now she disappeared. The police men on the left, Tom, answered.

"Her cell was opened from the outside. Because of the change of the guards, no one noticed, until this morning when they did a head count."

"What do you want from me? I've buried my dead wife three weeks ago, without my foster daughter because she was fighting for her life in a hospital. Then you arrested her, she tried to kill herself, and now you've lost her!", he shouted. Lara placed a calming hand on his arm but he didn't notice.

"You have no idea where she could be?", Tom asked softly.

"No. And even if I did, I doubt I would tell you. You don't have a really good record of taking care of her, do you?", Henry answered more calmly. He was feeling so dreadfully tired. All the stress of the last weeks, the organisation of the funeral, the caring of his family, then the stress of Jane's imprisonment and her reaction on that, the stress about Harry… It was all too much, all of a sudden. Wait – Harry!

"Maybe Harry knows.", he said slowly. "He's always been close to her." And more importantly, the lad was smart, he would only answer if Jane was a greater threat to herself then these men were. After all he talked the most to her, safe for Peter, but that was work only.

"Harry?", Tom answered.

"Yes, you've seen him at the station, haven't you?"

"I've only transferred here today.", he answered. "Do you know him, Connor?", he asked. "That's the lad that prevented that… woman from jumping. We… we arrested him last night, for being drunk in public. Put him in jail to sober up."

"Harry?", Henry asked. "That's odd, it's quite unlike him."

"We thought he couldn't handle the stress", Connor answered.

"Now, let's go talk to him.", Tom answered.

Connor called the station while Tom thanked Lara and Henry for their assistance when Connor came back in, looking pale all of the sudden.

"He has disappeared.", he said.

"But… how?", Tom asked.

"There was a problem with the electricity and because he was drunk, we put him in a low security cell, for in case he needed medical assistance. The lock was picked.", Connor asked.

"But none of you checked on him, right? Because you would know that he had disappeared then.", Tom said slowly.

"We were… busy", Connor answered.

"Well… got any idea where the lad is?", Tom asked Lara and Henry.

"I can think of only one thing: he was never drunk, and now he is going to confront Jane. He wants her to remember what happened.", Lara spoke softly.

"And that can only happen on the place of the accident", Henry finished.

At the place of the accident, Jane woke up with a start. Her head seemed clearer than it had been in ages and she sat up. Harry looked at her.

"I know what they did – how they questioned you for twenty-one hours in a day. I've listened to their interviews when Peter wasn't there and it wasn't pretty.", he said.

"I just need to remember what I've done", she said weekly.

"Not that way, Jane. They committed a crime; did you know that? Not only by questioning you for so long, but also in how they did it. It's called psychological torture. Banging on the walls while you were in your cell so you wouldn't be able to rest not even calculated in. They made you think you did it.", he said.

"But the evidence from the lab…", she protested. Harry cut her off.

"Is fabricated."

"What?", she said.

"The evidence that the tree didn't just fell, but was cut half through so that it would fall over, is fake. The original lab results show that it was an accident, but somebody hacked the database and changed that conclusion. Policemen often only look at the conclusion because the rest of it is Chinese. You didn't commit a murder, because there wasn't one in the first place.", he said. "Not to mention that they have been buying drugs to make you talk."

"But why?", she asked. She didn't know what to believe.

"Because one of them wants a promotion. He only needs to boost his name a bit, so that he can beat the other candidate.", he answered – a little sourly, in Jane's opinion.

On that moment, the police arrived, they heard their sirens.

"You broke me out", she said accusingly. "Are you nuts?", she half-shouted.

"More importantly: why didn't you realise that, when I came to get you?", he asked and smiled. Then he put his hands in the air and walked calmly out of the cave. She followed, thinking. What if he was right? And what had he meant with that last comment? Handcuffs clicked, and then minutes later they were back in the station and in their cells.

An hour later, Jane sat in the interview room. She had said that she wanted to talk to her attorney first. She saw him entering the room and smiled half-heartedly. It took effort – but the look on his face made it all worth it.

"Peter, I need you to do something for me.", she said.

"Whatever you need, but I want a bloody explication.", he answered.

"You haven't been present during all the interviews.", she started. She held up her hands when it looked like he was going to ask something. "I need to finish this and I can't if you interrupt me. Their questioning methods were… unorthodox. They made me think that I did it, they didn't let me sleep. I haven't rested in… I can't even remember. Since they arrested me, in any case. Harry found it out, when he realised something was wrong, after I tried to… Anyway, he decided I needed my missing memories to believe him. And now I remember – I haven't done anything; I remember all again. Harry also said that someone tampered with the lab results."

Peter looked stunned beyond belief.

"But there is nothing that can be done on that. Harry can be helped, though. I need you to find anything that can confirm this, in a legal way. It has to be submitted as evidence. We will use it to prove Harry handled in… how is it called… irresistible urge or something? He risked imprisonment for me, I owe him deeply."

It took Peter a few seconds to react, but finally he agreed on doing everything he could for Harry.

It was now three weeks later. They had been able to make a deal with the district attorney. Jane had been admitted in the ward for people with mental problems and was now released. Harry had already been released; his record was wiped clean again. She walked through the forest near her home, it felt good to be at there in peace.

"Why did you do it, Jane?", a voice asked. She recognised it instantly as Harry's.

"You have all heard what has happened, when I was interrogated. I could probably demand that those agents are fired, I could ruin the state with fines and fines. But what would it bring me? I would swim in the money. But I don't want that next year, when my story is forgotten, someone else is sitting here. I need to know that what happened to me can never happen again. But also, I needed to know that you were not punished for what you did. Because you left me in the dark on purpose, when you broke me out of prison, didn't you? You let me believe you had permission to take me out, that officers where left and right out of sight, that you believed I did it and wanted me to remember so I could honestly confess. Because you knew it would convince me later on that my head wasn't clear. You had it all planned out, didn't you?"

"Yes. But I couldn't leave you there.", he protested softly.

"Neither could I.", she answered. "Is it so hard to see that we both did what we did because we wanted to help the other?"

"How are you feeling about the school's sailing trip?", he asked shrewdly. She groaned, he knew she hated boats – which was his way of saying that he disagreed, but didn't know why.

"See now, there's nothing to be afraid of", Harry said cheerfully. She just sighed, she didn't feel like explaining, certainly because she was nauseous. They had been on a boat with a full sailing crew for three days. The intention had been that each boat contained five students, but because of Dudley, no one had wanted to join them – and luckily, none of them had to. Harry and Jane enjoyed their time alone, but ever since that one time they hadn't spoken about what happened. It felt like stepping on their those, but either of them thought the other didn't want to come back on it. As such, the words remained unspoken.

"Come on, are you going to be like this until we arrive in France?", Harry asked.

If Jane was completely honest with herself, she knew that France was part of the reason she didn't feel like talking. Her first foster parents had actively discouraged her to talk about her feelings and though she did try to be more open, this was something she couldn't talk about. What had happened between her foster parents and her wouldn't stay unknown forever, but she wanted to leave it unspoken as long as she could. And going back to France, she thought, brought back some memories that had better stay hidden from daylight.

"Now, come on. If I want to stare into the sea, then why…", she broke of abruptly. Harry looked up and saw why immediately. They had been sailing through the fog and now, they were out of it. Only, the other ships where nowhere to be seen.

"What are they saying?", Harry asked. He had seen that the captain and someone else were talking and by pure coincidence, she stood right where she could see their lips. He heard her sighing – she didn't like lip reading when someone didn't know. He watched her face darken with the second as she read on.

"The ships are visible on the radar, but aren't anywhere to see. They think someone hacked the radar or the board computer – don't ask Harry, I don't know what they are or how it is possible they are hacked – either way, we have been sailing in a direction, but we can't be sure witch one. That wasn't enough on itself, clearly, because water is getting in."

"But there's a floating compartment, right? We shouldn't be sinking.", Harry said.

"Agreed. Only one problem: we do sink.", she stated dryly.

"Well… It's a good thing we're not the Titanic, we do have lifeboats", he finally said.

**I'm calling it to an end here for this chapter. I would like to thank the people that have reviewed my story. Feel free to leave a review of your own, I truly appreciate it. Thank you for reading, and until next time!**


	6. Chapter 6: a really long chapter

**Author's note: I'm sorry I'm late on this update! As a way of apologising, this chapter is longer than ever. This is the last one before attending Hogwarts. I'm afraid my workload is increasing, so updates will be fewer. I'm sorry, but updating twice a week will be hard for me, as this week has proven. I will from now on upload whenever I have time, and it might be less than once a week. I will thus put an author's note above each chapter from now on so you know when the next update is ****expected****. Also, this might be less accurate then it has been. I'm sorry for the inconvenience, but on the bright side: I will try to make longer chapters. Thank you for your patience! Next update is aimed for 26 or 27 October.**

The good news only lasted for an hour or so, because when Harry woke in the life boat, his feet were wet. For one horrible moment he had thought that he had wet his pants and it was nearly a relief to realise that the was leaking water into the life boat. But when the truth fully set in, he had been horrified. They were young**, **both thin, and the sea was cold, whether it was June or not and last but not least it was far to any coast at this point, they were halfway through tot France – or so they thought, as radar hadn't been reliable. For one moment, he briefly wondered who had hacked them and why, but there were more urgent matters to look into, namely how they would have to survive this. They had gotten into their life jackets and had tried to keep warm, whilst staying inside the life boats for as long as possible. But it hadn't been long when they had to decide to jump into the water. The crew members had gotten into another life boat, so there was no one around safe them. The cold had been a shock, and they had been swimming for some time now – how long was impossible to say, because his watched didn't work and the moon hadn't risen. Jane had found some piece of wood drifting in the see and as long as it didn't sink, they held onto it, trying to swim a bit to keep warm. Harry had come with the idea the fasten each of theirs belt around the wood, so that when they passed out, they wouldn't fall off and drown.

"Are you still awake, Harry?", she asked.

"Yes, I'm still awake. I'm tired though.", he answered. It was true, he felt entirely drowsy but he also knew that if he stopped moving, he might very well be freezing to death.

"You know, I was never afraid of dying, but now I am afraid.", Jane said.

"Why weren't you afraid, Jane?", Harry asked. He wanted to ask why she had tried to kill herself, but given how she reacted last time, he decided against it.

"I guess… Earlier, before I knew you, I didn't care because… Well, I thought the death of my birth parents was my fault. I wanted to kill myself, you know. My foster parents… well the first pair at least, they made sure I kept believing it was my fault. They taught me only cruelty… But when I met you, I saw something different. I was curious… And I wanted to get to know you. Before I knew what was happening, we were friends and I couldn't kill myself. You had lost so much… But when I thought that I had killed Myriam, I couldn't live with myself. My first foster parents where criminals, and they taught me… a lot, so to speak. Myriam and Henry always thought better of me. And how had I repaid that debt? I killed her… I wasn't better, and in my eyes, I had lost the right to live. I didn't remember it, so I had to be very dangerous. I had to protect the world from me, whether that meant… removing me from the equation or not."

Her voice sounded weak and he knew she truly stood by what she said.

"I'm not going to promise I'll never go back to having these problems, because that's a promise I can't keep.", she continued. "I do promise that I'll find help, though. A lot of my issues this time around could have been prevented… The police officers might have made a mistake, but so did I. I didn't tell anyone, I pushed everyone away. And as such, you had no choice then to act like you did. That's why I included your freedom to the deal."

"You know Jane… What really is bothering me, is that you never ask for help.", Harry answered.

"Yes, you're right. I'm so used to solving my own problems that I have a hard time remembering that people will help me now when I ask. But I'm going to see someone, you know. A shrink, because I realise now that there are so many people who want to help me, who care about me. I can't let them down. I won't let them down."

Her voice sounded stronger, he noted. Then, they heard a helicopter and where blinded in the search light. They would be saved now, Harry thought relieved. As he was pulled on board first, he passed out, feeling tired and achy.

Jane blinked slowly, staring in bright lights uncomprehendingly for a split second – until she recognised the setting as a hospital. Next to her Lara sat in a chair, looking out the window.

"Lara?", she asked softly. Her throat ached slightly, she noted. Her airways where dry, perhaps they had given her oxygen. Her muscles ached, but apart from that she felt quite well, everything considered.

"Jane.", she said relieved. "How are you feeling?"

"Kind of… achy. My throat aches a bit, it feels like I ran a few hundred miles or so, but apart from that, quite well."

"Henry is getting an update with your doctor, they thought you would've already woken, so we were worried – no don't apologise! You needed rest, so don't worry about it.", Lara said. Grabbing Jane's hand and smiling a bit, she asked: "do you remember what happened?"

That was a good question, Jane thought. What happened?

"I remember the boat trip… We would be going to Le Havre, in France.", she said slowly. Her brain felt like it was swimming or something, she processed rather slow. "We were sinking – have they found the crew already?"

Lara's face darkened.

"Lara? What do you know I don't?", she said.

"They have safely arrived in Le Havre, but have disappeared ever since. They didn't go to a hospital.", she answered, frowning slightly. "But why weren't you in a life boat?"

"We were, in the beginning… but it sank and- "

"How do you mean, it sank?"

"Well water was coming in and the meters were telling that we were slowly sinking", Jane asked confused.

"Jane – those things have compartments to prevent that from happening, water or not.", Lara said worriedly.

Jane thought about it for a second. Had someone been trying to kill them? Had someone made their boat sink and hacked their boat computer, and then made the life boat sink? She couldn't reach a conclusion about it, and decided to continue her story.

"So, we jumped out… Into the water. I don't know how long we have been swimming, but it felt quite long…" she trailed off, looking at Lara expectantly.

"Nine hours, the doctors think. Something about based on your core temperature when you came in combined with the temperature of the sea – I didn't quite understand.", Lara told her. "You did plan your little swim well, in midsummer the water is a bit warmer, though you had both cooled down to thirty-two degrees."

Nine hours in the water… She had known it wasn't short, but this was beyond what she feared.

"Can I see Harry?", she asked. Lara frowned a bit but then smiled in a strange way Jane couldn't quite name. "O dear, he's just resting a bit, I was there earlier on."

"O… So, I can visit him later then?", Jane asked. Lara was still smiling, and suddenly she found the word she was looking for: strained. Lara's smile was forced – something was off… No, it couldn't be, she would have told her if something was wrong with Harry immediately, wouldn't she? Jane heard a monitor beep and snapped out of it – the heart monitor showed an elevated rate. Lara looked concerned, still holding her hand.

"I'm okay, I was just wondering who hacked and sabotaged us, I know the crew disappeared but I don't know any of them, I feel like I'm missing something…", Jane said.

"Elias has come here to see you", Lara said. Elias was her ex-boyfriend (as far as those relationships went on that age). Recently, Elias had been so possessive she had just told him she wanted a break, but he seemed unable to leave her alone. Henry tried to let them make up, but Lara had taken stand against that, luckily. "I've managed to keep him away, but only just."

"Good. I don't want to see him.", Jane answered evenly. Lara just nodded. The door flung open, and Henry entered, looking incredibly tired.

"Henry!", Jane exclaimed smiling. He was up there in an instant, hugging her tight. As always, she couldn't help but tense slightly.

"Do try to not get killed for some time now, would you?", he asked with trembling voice.

Jane smiled slightly and nodded.

It was several hours later and going by the dim light in the room it was night when Jane woke again. She had convinced Henry and Lara to go sleep a bit at their home while she slept a bit, and apparently, they had listened. She had tried to get to know more about Harry's condition, but they hadn't told her something new. Their vague answers and the glances they had exchanged made her worried, so she came up with a plan. She came out of bed and looked at the monitors. She was hooked up to so much, she couldn't just leave. Luckily, Jane had always had an interest in Henry's work and shut the machines down quickly, so that alarms wouldn't go off. It took a few minutes, but it was worth it. On the night shift not many people where around, and she ducked quickly into a changing room, changing her hospital gown for the pyjama's Lara had brought and put on a vest over it. She hoped that as long it was dark no one would see she was wearing pyjamas.

As she entered Harry's room – she had just used the night nurse's computer to find it when she went to check out a bell a patient had pressed on (which actually had been Jane, but she was faster than the nurse) – she groaned softly. Harry looked a deadly pale and far worse than she had. He was intubated*, on a heart and blood pressure monitor, had several IV's with fluids around his bed and other machines Jane couldn't name. She went closer to his bed, listening to the ventilator – its pace was slow, so he was still unconscious. Jane took a closer look at the IV bags. There was one with the normal fluids for dehydration, but also a few she hadn't expected. The last one contained a surprise: it was an antidote to the poison of a jellyfish of some kind. Jane frowned; she hadn't realised Harry had been stung by a jellyfish. Of course, he had been moving slower and had had trouble with breathing, but she had put that down as exhaustion and a reaction to the cold. She sighed, took a chair and settled down for the night.

Henry and Lara where walking through the corridors of the hospital. They both hoped it would last quite some time before they would see those corridors again, one Jane and Harry where discharged. Lara decided to visit the gift shop first, she needed time to cool down. She and Henry had been in an argument about whether they had to tell Jane about Harry. Henry thought it would be too much for her, but Lara had answered that she would find out eventually, and it was better to control the information she got. They hadn't come out of it.

When she entered the room, she saw Henry sitting in a chair, fear evident in his eyes.

"Henry?", she asked. Lara was getting nervous of this, Jane wasn't there but she was probably just seeing someone, nothing had happened, it couldn't be…

"She's gone. She left, no one knows where.", he whispered. "I asked the nurse where she was, and she said she…", he broke off.

"Maybe she went to Harry – you know how smart she is, she might have figured it out…", Lara said.

"She can't undo the wires.", the nurse protested briskly.

"Great. That means she is still here, right?", she asked ironically. "We should check."

And she was right. When they entered Harry's room, Jane was sitting on a chair. Her red-rimmed eyes latched on her sister and Henry. "So, you came.", she spoke deadly calm. "Who of you is going to explain what in the HELL is going on?", only slightly raising her voice.

Lara took a deep breath and guided Jane back in the chair she had risen from.

"Jane…"

Her eyes flashed in anger. "Don't baby me. You had your chance to tell me when I asked, you could have left parts out and I would have understood. But not now, now you have to tell me what on EARTH is going on with him? He's fighting for his life right now, so what happened? I figured he was stung by a jellyfish, is he having a bad reaction?", Jane asked, raising her voice even more.

"Not a jellyfish… The Portuguese Man O'war.", Lara said. Jane looked like she was going to interrupt, but Lara continued. "It's a siphonophore, a colony of poisonous polyps together..."

"Can we skip the biology part?", Jane asked shortly.

Lara sighed another time and Henry took over. "They usually drift in warmer seas, but they drifted away sometimes, or it was a single tentacle. It doesn't really matter; I've seen the stings from when I went to Australia and recognised it instantly – I was working here when you came in. The good news is that it usually isn't deadly. The bad news is that Harry had the venom circulating for a long time, and he's having something called anaphylactic shock. The venom travelled through his system for so long it has led to an allergic reaction – or at least something with the same symptoms. We have given him medicines that should help with that, but the poison had had so much time to spread… It was not looking good.", he finished.

"And why, exactly, didn't you tell me before?", Jane asked. She was holding herself together impressively, Henry thought.

"We – a look from Lara made him change his sentence – I thought you would be too upset. You were just injured again; you have barely recovered from last time."

"You know, Henry, you can be worried about me. But you can't leave me out of this. Harry and I have been in this together. I want to know how he is doing. Is that so strange?"

"You're right… I just wanted to protect you. You have been through so much…"

Jane smiled. "I know. I'm at fault too, I should have asked instead of running of, shouldn't I?". Henry just nodded, and with that, they settled down around Harry's bed.

Another hour later, Jane woke and looked around. Both Lara and Henry where still sleeping in their chairs, nothing had moved. So, what had woken her? She looked around in the dark room, and when her eyes landed on the bed, she smiled softly.

"Harry?", she asked, ringing a bell for the nurse. No response, but she had seen his heart rate going up, and it was climbing steadily. Not so much time later Harry was off the ventilator, taking breaths of his own. She sat down and waited. Half an hour later, her patience was rewarded, when his eyelashes flashed. "Welcome back, Harry.", she said smiling. She knew everything would be all right.

The days after that went on like a haze to Jane – for not only Harry was slowly recovering, but also the police had found out who the perpetrator was, not that they had done anything: Harry had hacked the servers from his sick bed and sent the information anonymously to the police, using various proxy-servers to disguise who it had been. It was Elias, and that was something Jane found hard to accept. They had dated in the orphanage in France, and where both adopted by English families. They had known each other a year and she just hadn't seen how obsessed he was with her, so obsessed he had tried to eliminate Harry because he seemed a threat. She had tried multiple times to explain him Harry was a friend, but nothing more until she was sick of it – and then things had escalated. He had manipulated the lab results, so he could show later on, when she had been in prison for a while, that she was innocent, in order to rise in her esteem. When that hadn't worked and even worse, when his enemy had taken credit for it, he had tried to kill Harry. Apparently, he thought all would be alright between them again.

But that wasn't everything. On the search that followed, they had found an entire cell block close by filled with people. Many of them where dead, and those who lived where kept in the dark since they had disappeared. Nothing seemed to connect them, and even worse, traces where found of two little kids that had been down there. Elias refused to say where he had left them, despite even Jane's attempts to make him talk. She hadn't been there much, as it was horrible to hear him plead to take him back, and as Harry said: she had a right to be a child at this age.

_One year later_

Jane walked home slowly. After the incidents last year, she and Harry had joined a new task force: a part of the police where children investigated violence cases where other children were involved. Children often thought in other ways then adults, and as such it was fit to let children investigate. The actual interrogation, house searches and most dangerous things were still done by adults. Around that time, she had also noticed that she could heal people: slowly by just being there, or more instantly through physical touch. It came with a price, though: if she healed something too big like a stab wound, her tissue around the same place as the person she was healing, would also damage, but only slightly. She couldn't heal everything because of this, and she had had a hard time accepting that. Jane also learned she could read minds, and both she and Harry had trained on communicating: Harry made certain thoughts available, and shortly after that she learned she could send thoughts too. It was a nice back-up, but other than that she didn't use her abilities. It took now more effort than ever to block everything out, and though she made process, Jane wasn't that skilled yet.

She looked at the sky and frowned. It was a beautiful first of August 1991, but something was missing – or rather someone was missing: Harry. The Dursleys left for holidays more than once, but usually Harry said he didn't want to join them. But not this time. She wondered if she had done something wrong, as she went to pour herself a glass of grape juice. When she closed the fridge's door, however, she nearly dropped the bottle – because right there stood the source of her current train of thought, looking decidedly angry. After a few minutes of stunned silence, his angry look disappeared and changed in a more thinking-hard-look.

Harry had had the strangest day. He just came back from shopping with Hagrid. The ride back home with the Dursley's would have been unpleasant, so he was glad he could just take the train. He had gone straight to Jane, knowing she had known about the magical world, about his parents and hadn't said a thing. He was angry – until he had looked her in the face, because then it struck him. There was only one reason why she would hide this for him… He only vaguely noticed Jane was leading him to the couch in the living room.

"How did you find out?", she asked softly, gazing him with sad eyes.

"The box in your room, the rectangular black one? I saw it when I went for my computer a year ago, when I hacked the police department. And today, as we were wand shopping, I noticed that al the wand boxes looked like that."

"It was the wand box from my biological mother.", she said. There was a long pause.

"You know, when I came in, I was angry because you didn't tell me. But it just struck me – it's so unlike you, we talk about everything and… I just thought…", Harry said, hesitating. How in the world could he phrase this? "Did Voldemort kill your parents?", he finally blurted out.

"You really are sharp you know", Jane said while looking down. "Here's the story. When Voldemort came to power, few people initially realised something was wrong. A part thought his ideas weren't that bad and didn't choose sides – that was the largest part. He had his followers of course; they were called Death Eaters. And then you had the resistance. Both our parents were part of that. My parents had information Voldemort absolutely wanted to know. So, a good three weeks before Halloween, he found us in our hiding place… He didn't take their refusal to talk so good." She looked at him. "He tortured them. Long. Anyway, he caught me too, and after two weeks, he killed my dad. Heart attack. And while I ran towards him… Voldemort came with the idea of torturing me. I do think my mother would have given in on that point… But they had obliviated themselves, when their wards fell." She didn't look too good when she finished, but Harry felt slightly green himself.

"That's how you got the brain damage, isn't it?", Harry asked. "It was spell damage." She just nodded as they sat in silence a bit more.

"What information was it, Jane?", he asked. When she didn't immediately answer, he asked: "was it my parents' location?" She nodded solemnly after some time.

"You have to understand Harry, I remembered your location. I could have said it. But I _chose_ not to. Voldemort had promised me we would be free then, but I could see already that he was lying. It was my choice to keep silent and no one else's. I knew the consequences and even if I didn't: I could change my mind any time. I chose not to."

They sat a while, in comfortable silence. She gave him a birthday present: a small piece of parchment that would show him and him only a secret way out when he asked it. Jane would not be attending Hogwarts because of her problems with crowds, but every now and then she would visit Hogsmeade, and they could either talk through their minds or he could use the parchment for a way out of Hogwarts, and they could talk face to face. His owl – Harry was yet unsure what to name her – would also be able to find her and as such they could be in touch. He tanked her, and after agreeing she, Lara and Henry would accompany him to King's cross, he left to his room there. He felt sad he would have to leave Jane, but couldn't help to be exited when he thought about Hogwarts.

*** (tracheal) intubation happens when someone can't get enough air on his own, for example when there is severe trauma or when someone is anesthetized. The ventilator can be manual (like someone pumping a balloon, mostly used when it's short-term or when it wasn't expected, like in ER) or mechanical (a machine which has been set on a certain volume and pace). I hope I'm explaining this good enough, since I'm not a doctor. Please note also that I'm not a hacker, I'm just using it a bit to make the story move.**

**Thank you for bearing with me and my ridiculous upload timing. Please, feel free to leave a review!**

_**Next update is aimed for 26 or 27 October – see author's note above**_


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's note: hello there! I'm back with another chapter, we finally made it to the first Hogwarts chapter. I expect it will be mostly riding the train and sorting. I'll explain how Jane will participate in the events at Hogwarts, even though she won't be there, at least for the first year. I still have to decide how long it will take for Jane to go to Hogwarts, but in the end she will certainly attend. One last thing: I actually forgot something last chapter that I'm planning on using later on. I wondered whether I should edit last chapter, but I ended up deciding against it and I have decided to put it in as a flashback. The next update is aimed for the 2****nd**** of November. Now, on to the (long awaited) train scene!**

Harry woke early on the first of September. Jane had offered to take him to the King's Cross, because she knew how he would have to go to platform 93/4. He thought about what she had said last night. After the revelations of the first of August, he had finally had the courage to ask her what happened after her parents' dead.

_Begin flashback_

_Harry had wondered for a long time how he would ask this, because he could imagine the subject was quite sensitive. In the end, he had decided that Jane liked straightforward and as such, he would just ask._

"_Are you going to ask the question you're brooding on, or should I come back next year?", she asked sarcastically. "You're fidgeting like never before, you haven't heard a word from what I said and you haven't even said a word yourself since you came in. Come on, spit it out!"_

"_I was thinking…", he trailed off, but she motioned for him to continue, "You're parents died, but what happened then? How did you survive?"_

_She looked at him, and then looked down. "My mother died the same day as my father. It was still a week before Halloween… I do believe, normally, Voldemort would have killed me. But he noticed that I learned new thing – that I could see emotions, that I could project a shield to block most curses, sort of like the shield charm, and I could expand it over more people. He thought I'd be useful for him. So, he brought me on his side. He made me watch while he tortured, killed, questioned and whatever he came to think of. But luckily, it only lasted a week. He asked a pair of Death Eaters to take care of me, and they continued to do so after he disappeared – no, I don't believe he is dead. They tried to make me a weapon. Who would be afraid of a little girl? Who would suspect her? I would be the perfect spy. When I was six – after five years being a prisoner in a house in France – I managed to escape, and established contact with the French Ministry of Magic. But I went back for two weeks – they could arrest an entire network because of that, I spied on them. Ironically, isn't it? I was left at an orphanage. They sought out my sister, Lara and found her after some time. Then I came here. We decided to leave me officially dead, because otherwise there might be repercussions. And that was that."_

_End flashback_

Harry couldn't imagine what it must have been like, living with the people responsible for her parents dead for five years. He heard noises in the kitchen and went downstairs. Jane was answering a call, frowning. When she hung up, she said that she couldn't go with him to King's cross, but Henry would drive them. However, neither of them could stay, because Jane had a new case and Lara's and Henry's experience had been requested there. As he stepped out of the car, she explained that he had to calmly walk through the wall between platform nine and ten. She hugged him, smiled and told him to remember that no matter what happened, no matter which House he would be sorted into, they would always be friends. And with that, Jane watched Harry run through a certain barrier, and finally dropped her strong face. Because no matter what, she wanted to be with him, she wanted to go to Hogwarts – but the blinding headache she had now proved why she couldn't, and she left to her new case.

Later that night, Jane was pacing in her living room, while Henry and Lara where watching with a resigned expression on their face.

"Tell me, what are you so worried about? That Harry is sorted into Slytherin? Because he can be cunning, we all now that.", Lara stated, grabbing Jane's arm.

"That doesn't matter to me, but it does to him. He is afraid that his parents will be disappointed if he isn't sorted into Gryffindor and he won't take it from me, or from anyone else for that matter, that it just doesn't matter to them."

With these words, she resumed pacing until a certain snow white owl entered through the already open window. As Hedwig landed, Jane untied a parchment roll from Hedwig's paw. She started reading:

_Dear Jane, and Lara and Henry if you're there too;_

_Don't worry about not seeing me to the train, mrs. Weasley took care of that (with great pleasure, I think). I'm sorted in Gryffindor! I'm so happy, I feel like I can be a son my parents could be proud of, even though I know you don't see it like that. I already made friends with Ron, the youngest son of the Weasleys. He's sorted in Gryffindor, too. I met Hermione again here! She is just so bossy, not like she was when we met at your place – but I remember she was bullied on her old school, so maybe she just wants friends and doesn't really know how to do it better then in primary school (maybe it sounds harsh, but that's what I make of it). She is sorted in Gryffindor, too; although I feel like she could've been a Ravenclaw. It doesn't matter to me; I know the feeling of being alone all the time all to well._

_Now I'm going to finish this and go back to my dorm, I'm rather tired of the trip. I hope classes go well tomorrow._

_Good luck with your investigation,_

_Harry_

Jane felt herself relax again and sat down on a chair, smiling to herself. Looking over the top of the letter she said: "Gryffindor. He's happy and made some friends already, with the Weasleys. And Hermione is attending too, apparently."

"Hermione… the nice, silent, a bit studious, always polite girl?", Lara asked. Jane nodded, that described Hermione perfectly, though apparently she got a bit bossy. She still remembered the day Harry and Hermione had met. Through the year Hermione and Harry had become better friends, though never as heartily as they got, but still friends. She was happy Harry would keep an eye on her, he was probably quite right.

The following Friday, she got a letter. Jane had decided to move to their house in Hogsmeade, so she could get used to the enormous pressure of minds without setting foot on Hogwarts' grounds and had written to Harry about it. She hoped she would be able to attend next year. Another advantage, as she saw Hedwig sweeping in, was that it would take much less time to conversate. They could just floo to their house in Little Surrey, when it was required, like for work. She quickly went back too the letter, she didn't want to think on her current case.

_Dear Jane,_

_I've survived my first week perfectly well. I've got the strong feeling my potions professor doesn't like me (maybe something happened at school between my parents and him? They are born in the same year I believe, and it seems to run deeply). Apart from that, History of Magic is dead boring, with a ghost as professor. But I like the rest of the courses though – I even managed to turn my match a bit silver of a bit pointy but neve the same at the same time*. Hermione managed to do it fully, and she seems to be dawning a bit when I complimented her on that. I'm still trying with her, but Ron doesn't want to have anything to do with her. I hope think she slightly hurt his feelings, on the train a spell of his failed. Well, after the Potions disaster, we visited Hagrid. He brought me to Diagon Alley, do you remember that? Of course you do, you remember everything… Anyway, there was a newspaper there. Have you heard about the break-in in Gringots? That was on the same day as my birthday! I advise you to think closely on what else happened on that visit, it was quite interesting (as opposed to life here, just the little struggles at schools), so you don't die of boredom._

_I'm happy to know you're nearby. How are you? Not to bored?_

_Harry _

Jane thought deeply, what was Harry referring to? Oh, yes, Hagrid had emptied a vault on their trip. Was it that they wanted to steal? Well, it was the headmasters responsibility… She wrote a letter back the same evening, telling him that and reminding him to have fun, not to worry about her.

***I know this never happened in the real story, but in my story Harry is a bit… well not smarter but using his brains more.**

**Next update is aimed for the 2****nd**** of November.**


	8. Chapter 8

**So****,**** another**** update for my readers! Feel free to leave comment, it's much appreciated. Thank you! ****Next update is aimed for 23****th**** or 24****th**** November, due to a deadline.**

As the week went by, Jane continued to have letters from Harry, and occasionally he would write to Lara and Henry too. She was happy to read that he continued his efforts with Hermione, certainly because they had been friends ever since they met. It saddened her that Hermione was so unsure of herself she took to being bossy, which alienated her from her year mater, but there wasn't anything she could do about it, unless giving the girl some carefully phrased advise in her letters. Harry's next letter had her falling on the couched, upon which Lara looked slightly concerned to her. Henry had left because of an emergency in the hospital he worked for (besides his work with the newly formed cell Lara, Harry and Jane where also working, he worked at a muggle hospital and St.-Mungo's).

"What happened?", Lara asked. She wasn't attending Hogwarts because she wanted to be with her little sister – they had been separated for so long.

"There's good news and bad news. Which do you want to hear first?", Jane asked.

Though Lara privately thought she would prefer it otherwise, for Jane's sanity she went with the good news. Hopefully she would get a grip on herself.

"He became Gryffindor's seeker."

There was a stunned silence. "I thought first years weren't allowed?", Lara asked.

"His head of House supports it. Harry writes she wants to win the Quidditch cup, and apparently she was impressed when he nearly killed himself."

"Huh?"

"He caught Neville's Remembrall – Malfoy had stolen it and dropped it – and she saw him, apparently", Jane replied evenly.

"And the bad news?", Lara asked worriedly.

"He stood face to face with what is described as – and I quote – 'a giant dog, with three heads, an amazing amount of drool and saliva, yellowish fangs, thunderous growls; a dog that needs exercise and wouldn't be out of place in a haunted house'."

"He faced a Cerberus?!", Lara asked faintly.

"Thank Merlin he had the brains to run away. He is more concerned though that this was the final straw between Ron and Hermione, as she sees it as Harry is rewarded for rule breaking by getting on the team and was encouraged by that, while Ron sees it as a compliment to Harry's talent and a righteous defence of his honour when he went to duel Malfoy. They voiced their opinions – and I quote again – 'in a rather unpleasant and loud manner'."

"While the last part is not really nice to hear, the first part is concerning me more. Why is there a Cerberus in school?", Lara asked.

"That's not going to make you any happier. Harry noted that its paws where standing on a trap door, and unfortunately not only Hermione noticed the same, but also voiced her opinion in the Common Room, leading Ron to speculate that is was the package Hagrid retrieved when he took Harry to Diagon Alley. He's probably right, but I don't think it's a good thing to let the world now, not even someone in your common room."

"You think Harry is going to try to find out what it is?"

"He will only do that when he thinks it might be compromised, but still. Him knowing it is putting him in even more danger. I still don't like it."

"Maybe, but you still haven't fully explained how it was back in V-Voldemort's best days. Maybe, if you told him it was all out war instead of a mad man running around, and knowing some of his friends or still free, Harry would be more careful."

"I don't want to scare him!", Jane said frustrated.

"I know. But you can't pamper him, and he is really grown up for his age."

"Maybe you're right, but how in the hell do I tell him that? I'll just do it on the right occasion.", Jane said, trying to sound confident.

"There's no right time for some things.", Lara answered. "You're just stalling."

"I'm not!". Lara just sighed. "If you'll excuse me, I have a letter to write.", Jane said.

Lara sighed again. She knew her sister still had troubles, talking about those days. It was one of the reasons her everything-remembering memory wasn't a help but a burden. Imagine remembering every detail of two weeks of torture, Lara shuddered at the thought. After the whole incident with her ex, Jane hadn't been the same. She was drowning in guilt, working too hard, and just darker, by lack of a better word, then otherwise. Henry said she just needed time, but it had been a year since. It was not getting better.

The following day, Jane received a letter from Harry that he had received his broom and had a good first training. On Halloween though, the note she received was short: Harry needed to talk to her, urgently. She then realised she had entirely forgotten about the duelling matter – she would have to bring that up later tonight.

By the time she stopped running, Jane was out of breath and dark spots covered her vision. She gathered her thoughts and reached out mentally to Harry.

"_Harry? Are you there?"_

"_Yes."_

"_Why did you want to see me?"_

"_I'll show you."_

_Harry showed her a memory, beginning with a charms class. Jane and current Harry watched silently as professor Flitwick separated them in pairs, and Jane sighed; it was a disaster waiting to happen. And indeed, with Hermione correcting him and professor Flitwick – rightfully – congratulating her, Ron seemed in a foul mood; this didn't improve when Harry succeeded first after Hermione. She watched them leave, and flinched at Ron's comments about her having no friends. She was glad to hear Harry berated him, and after their next class, during lunch time, went to check on her. Hermione sent him off, but at least he tried. Things went on to the feast, she remembered suddenly it was Halloween – a holiday they never celebrated. She watched the feast, silently. So far, she hadn't seen anything that couldn't have been told in a letter, but Harry looked like the worst was yet to come. Jane looked up just in time to see Quirrell come running, telling about a troll in the dungeons and passing out. She watched as professor Dumbledore ordered them to go to their common rooms._

"_Wasn't Slytherin's common room in the dungeons?", she asked._

_Harry nodded. "They have another room for emergencies though."_

_She watched the memory unfold further, with the dreaded feeling that she knew what was going to happen. And indeed, Harry and Ron reached the conclusion that Hermione didn't know about the troll. While she found his motives right, he still needed improvement on his methods, she thought. Jane watched them and stiffened when Ron reported a foul stench; and indeed, there came the troll. They looked it in, and Jane stiffened even more – she didn't think a wooden door would stop the troll for long. Then they heard a yell, and she frowned. Hermione was in another bathroom last time, but Harry explained that she had decided to leave the bathroom to go to their common room but had encountered Peeves. He gestured for her to pay attention when they entered the bathroom. Jane saw Harry using pipelines to defend him from the troll, trying to lure it so that Ron and Hermione could escape. But the troll had some strong blows. Eventually, Harry didn't fully block it but let it hit the floor. On the split second of confusion, he hit it fiercely on the head, with Ron giving it the final blow with a Wingardium Leviosa. Jane was impressed, and watched the rest of the scene unfold. After some points where awarded and Ron apologised to Hermione, the memory stopped._

"_What exactly was I meant to notice?", she asked._

"_That was not only the corridor where I encountered that dog, but also… Quirrel fainted dead because of a troll and goes hunting it down? Not only a fast recovery, but also, why? Why wasn't he afraid then? And if he wasn't on the third floor for the troll, why was he there?"_

"_What are you implying?"_

"_Either Snape or Quirrel is trying to steal the stone.", he responded. "I just can't prove it."_

"_You can't back out of it; it's not in your nature, but also, you're seen by your two suspects. If one of them is indeed trying to steal whatever that dog is guarding, you know too much. The only thing you can do is try to find out more. Use knowledge as power."_

A long silence followed.

"_Harry? Please, be careful." She felt him move fast and he became very tense. When he relaxed, she asked: "What happened?"_

"_Quirrel. He was here. I hid in a dark piece of the owlery. I was here because it doesn't attract much people, but I'm moving to a more crowded place.", Harry said. "Jane? I don't feel safe here anymore…"_

After she got word from him that he reached his common room safely, Jane left in a considerably lower pace. Harry had given her much to think about. And, she thought, in the light of things she had forgotten to reprimand him for risking his life like that but also forget about the duel again.

Jane was still thinking on what had happened on Halloween, with a cup of tea on the sofa. Today Harry's first match was taking place, and she had wished him luck. As a matter of fact, she had expected him to already write her. Hopefully he was still celebrating.

With that, there was a knock on the door in a familiar pattern. She went to answer it and fount a rattled Harry behind it, still holding the parchment she gave him for his birthday in his hand. She gestured for him to come in and they sat on the sofa.

"Someone tried to kill me.", Harry said in desolate tone. "Someone bewitched my broom, made it buck me off, but they didn't succeed."

"An idea who?", she asked, concerned.

"It's either Quirrel or Snape. Hermione has seen Snape keeping eye contact and mumbling something. From my broom I could see Quirrel doing the same. Hermione distracted Snape by using a fire charm, but she also ran into Quirrel. So, it could have been either of them, but I'd have fallen if it was both, so I think one of them used a counter curse."

"Who?", Jane asked, leaning forward.

"I don't know."

"You actually know more than you think. You've been in the castle for a while now and you are very perceptive. Now, use your gut feeling. Who tried to kill you?"

A brief pause, then – "Quirrel. Snape is more… how should I say it… Cunning, more subtle. Quirrel is a blundering idiot, leaving him with more motive, because I think whoever tried to kill me also tried to steal the … whatever that dog is guarding."

They stayed silent for a while.

"There is more", Harry said. "Snape has a wound from the three-headed dog. But I've seen Quirrel on that floor, when they came when we knocked the troll out. So… What if Quirrel let the troll in a distraction. But now I know too much, I've seen him there. He must have realised there was a chance to that after he came in when we defeated the troll. Also, I'd normally be suspecting Snape, because he doesn't like me one bit. And I should suspect him even more after this. I think Quirrel is trying to steal it, and trying to make it look like it is Snape."

"Whatever it is that dog is guarding- "

"Hagrid told me it's from Nicholas Flamel." Harry watched as the blood drained from Jane's face.

"He invented the philosopher's stone, a stone that can make gold and provides an eternal life."

"So Quirrel wants to be rich, so what?", Harry asked slowly.

"Because, what if he is not doing it for himself, but to resurrect Voldemort?"

They stayed silent for some time again.

"Well you should go talk to Ron and Hermione.", Jane said.

"I'm not going to do that - no, don't say it! – because as long as they suspect Snape, they won't be subtle and that will mean Snape will be keeping an eye on them, keeping them safe like that. I already know too much, but if Quirrel thinks I'm the only one, they are safe. It's the only way, Jane. I need to keep them safe." Harry looked so tired, stressed and old; Jane just agreed with him.

Harry informed her next week he would be staying in the castle for the holidays – as she wanted to keep her identity and existence a secret to Dumbledore, it was best not to raise any attention. He might now the Dursleys had planned a holiday, like Harry wrote her in his letter. He hadn't told either of them about his knowledge of the Stone, or his suspicion of Quirrel. Like they were looking in the library, Harry hoped they would drop the subject if they didn't find something for long enough. Jane and Harry had had an argument about whether he should tell them the entire truth, but Harry's previous arguments had still been in place and seeing him so stressed, she decided again not to push. The day after Christmas day she received a note, thanking her for her present (she had gotten him a ticket to a professional lower level regional Quidditch match in Spain. He also wrote he had gotten his fathers cloak from an unknown person. But there was something strained in his note, like he wasn't telling her everything. From what he was not telling her, it seemed like he was more depressed than she was. She wondered what exactly had gotten into him. When he came around, when Hermione had already returned to the castle, he seemed rather tired, but said it was due to Quidditch training. She didn't buy it, though. He distracted her quickly enough with the news they had officially found out about the Stone. In his next letter though, he stated that they had won against Hufflepuf, being first in place for the Quidditch cup. But more importantly he had heard a conversation between Snape and Quirrel, where it looked like Snape was questioning Quirrel. Harry hadn't heard it entirely, but he could lipread, and had read the entire conversation. Even without that he didn't think Snape would ever ask Quirrel for help with anything.


	9. Chapter 9

**It's been quite some time, unfortunately. But now we can finally continue this story. As for future updating: I'll unfortunately not be updating as regularly when exams are coming up in January. I'm sorry but I probably will have you waiting until I've finished them, I'll put a notice on the last chapter I post before the exams. Until then I'm looking week on week. Thank you for your patience and understanding! Since it has been a while, there's a recap.**

_Recap: This story is about what would happen if Harry had a friend. This friend, Jane, turns out to be a witch. Before Harry finds out about this, she loses her adoptive mother Myriam. Jane is accused of her death, but Harry helps to prove her innocence. After that they go on a boat trip, but the boat sinks because Jane's ex-boyfriend, Elias, sabotaged it. During the year after that Harry and Jane join a task force where children investigate crimes that involve children. The more dangerous part is still done by adults, like Jane's adoptive father Henry. Jane discovers she had certain powers: she can read minds (they use it so Harry and Jane can communicate), she can heal people, and she senses other people's emotions. She is still working on blocking people out. When Hagrid tells Harry about the magical world, he realises the wand box from Ollivander looks familiar because he has seen one just like that in Jane's room. Angry that she didn't tell him anything, he goes to confront her. Harry fins out that Jane and her birth parents were tortured by Voldemort for his parents' location. Jane's parents couldn't give up that location because they had obliviated themselves, and Jane keeps silent. She suffers brain damage, causing her powers. Jane nor her sister Lara attend Hogwarts, but they continue to communicate. They don't bring him to the train because of an urgent case. The story is the same form there on, with the exception that Harry suspects Quirrel, but doesn't dare to tell his friends because he is afraid for their safety. And Hermione is sorted in Ravenclaw, but they are friends nonetheless._

Harry felt like it had been ages since he had really relaxed. First, there was the strain of trying to keep Ron and Hermione in the dark, in hopes that as long as they knew nothing, they would be safe. Then, there was an attempt on his life. He had seen his parents in that stupid mirror, and he couldn't even talk to Jane about it, because she didn't know how life with the Dursleys really was. She didn't know they'd never shown him pictures, and if she did it wouldn't be long before she knew something was wrong. He always tried to make it look like nothing strange happened there, but he knew that the cupboard thing wasn't normal. Harry just couldn't stand the thought of Jane in trouble – he knew that if she came out for who she was, something she would have to do if she wanted to request that he was replaced, she would be a dead man. Jane knew too much, had seen too much Death Eaters without a mask, was trained to think like them and become their weapon. She was too dangerous to them. And he knew if she tried to help him the press wouldn't let it go unnoticed. Harry had thus tried to keep the mirror a secret from her, and tried to lead her attention away with the conversation he had heard. He had decided to tell Ron and Hermione about that – they would think it was Snape, and they weren't subtle about their suspicions, so Snape kept an eye on them (maybe he thought they were planning to let a bomb of in his office or something, though Harry thought you had to be suicidal to dare to do that). And just as he thought it couldn't get worse, he had found out that Hagrid got hands on a dragon egg! He had written to Jane that he needed to speak with her urgently, again. But before he could send Hedwig, Jane had sent her owl, Barnsy, with a note that she would be out of country for a while, because of their case. Harry had thus decided to contact Charlie Weasley, but unfortunately, they had been caught after they saw Norbert, the dragon egg, leave. Jane had not been happy about their punishment (_Seriously, you're punished for being out of bounds late at night and then you have to go to the Forbidden forest at 11 PM, so you're out of bounds again, late at night?). _But the fact that Harry had encountered Voldemort had made her decide to come back, immediately. Harry felt slightly guilty but a lot safer.

Harry mentally cursed. How things could have gone so wrong was beyond him. It started well, though: he had had his last exam and they were finally free. It was only then he realised it: how did Hagrid get the dragon egg? He should have thought about it sooner. But now, Quirrel knew how to get past Fluffy, he knew about most other traps and – far worse – Dumbledore had left for the Ministry of Magic and Jane had left again for her case (something about a lead, the first real lead in her investigation). The latter could be a coincidence, but the rest weren't. He knew it, Voldemort was coming back and someone – no, he – had to stop that. He couldn't imagine what would happen, not only to the Magical World but also to him and Jane, and Ron and Hermione and just too many others. It was too much. He would go down there, and he swallowed the lump in his throat when he realised that Ron and Hermione were willing to go there with him. Harry decided he would owl Jane, she might not be in town, but she would get the note anyway. She would not let him down.

Jane sat behind her desk and groaned. The lead had been a good one, but the paperwork was a lot of work, and she hated that. Part of it still had to be done by her. She looked up when she heard tapping on the window, it was Hedwig. Jane got up quickly and let the ruffled owl in. She quickly opened the note:

_Dear Jane,_

_I hope you'll forgive me for being short, but Voldemort knows how to get past Fluffy – he used the dragon egg for that. He now knows nearly all of it. We went to tell Dumbledore but he wasn't there, we told McGonagall, but she didn't believe us. We are out of options, Jane, and I can't let the mass murder of our parents and so many others, responsible for so many other deaths, come back to life and power. I know I probably won't make it, but I try to let the others survive. Be there for them, please?_

_Forever yours,_

_Harry James Potter_

Shocked, she broke into a run, got a police officer to bring the note to Henry and tell him to get the cavalry, now. _Forever yours_, she kept hearing in her head. It sounded like it was a suicide note, and she realised he held little hope for his survival. But he had to, she couldn't think of life without him anymore.

Harry stared at the mirror of Erised. He never thought he would encounter it again, and struggled to remember what he had learned about it. They had gotten through the enchantments better than he had hoped: the plant hadn't been trouble for Hermione, though he hadn't remembered it since it was only mentioned sideways, along with plants that liked darkness. The keys had been no problem for him, but he could imagine someone who wasn't a seeker would have problems. And witch professional Quidditch player would come to Hogwarts? No, the stone was well protected. There just was no stopping Lord Voldemort, and they had been lucky that Hermione was on their side. And Ron, because neither of them could play chess to save their lives. Witch was essentially what they were doing. The troll was still knocked out. The potions riddle… well Harry was good in handling riddles. He got the solution only a few minutes after Hermione. He had luckily been able to convince her to go back, and went in. There he was met as expected by Quirrel, who was apparently too lazy to search the Stone for himself (or too stupid). And now, it would come down to a fight, he knew it. Because he had just felt the stone in his pocket. As Quirrel asked him what he saw, again, he was still thinking about the voice he had heard. He gathered all his courage.

Jane ran onto the street, took a cab to her house in London and flooed to Hogsmeade. She then started running towards the castle, using her sense of emotions to try and figure the path out that Harry used when he came to visit her, hoping it wasn't too late. She shielded herself from view (she hadn't told Harry about that, but she could move without people seeing her). Following the path was hard, and she reached out to Harry. She felt another familiar presence: the strong, determined presence of none else then Albus Dumbledore was running through the streets of Hogsmeade, disguised. Jane hesitated only a second: she could leave it to Dumbledore, and be sure that he didn't know that she survived; or she could still go, she would be there sooner if she called their House elf to come and bring her to Harry. Panting, she realised she'd better done that sooner. But she had panicked, she had failed Harry. She made her decision and called: "Treaty!", while reaching out to Harry again.

Harry felt an immense amount of panic when he heard Jane. Because right now, he was staring at a face he knew. He would never forget the cruel laugh, the red eyes, the snake-like face. He was staring at Lord Voldemort. If she came here before Dumbledore, they would both die here. Unless… A plan was forming in his head. It was a desperate plan, but it was the best he could think of right now. He looked at Voldemort when he requested the stone yet again.

"As long as I can stand against you, I will. You will not take over without having an enemy forever.", he said, content that his voice was even. "You'll have to destroy me; but remember: hope dies hard. You killed my parents and so many others; you gave us something to hate. You united us."

"United?", the _creature_ said. "United? And yet you stand here alone, dear boy. You're still a kid. Give me the stone and your death will be swift and easy. If not, you will suffer for days. I'll win anyway."

"No", Harry said defiantly. He lifted his chin. "I don't bow to you; I refuse to call you he-who-must-not-be-named. You have a name, and while it is clearly not your real name, I will use it, _Lord Voldemort_", he spit out.

"You dare defying me? You're parents where just as brave. Soon you will join them, young Harry. Size him!", he yelled.

But Harry was ready. Jane had taught him how to raise a shield, but he had never been able to do it. He now knew why. He needed motivation. And while he thought strongly about protecting her, he raised a stable, clear shield. He felt her coming and smiled. And then everything went wrong. Apparently aggravated by his smile, Quirrel started firing heavy hexes, and his shield just couldn't hold it. It burst into a million pieces. Quirrel launched himself at Harry, but cried out in pain. Harry looked at the blisters and instinctively grabbed Quirrel's arm to prevent him from casting. While his head felt like bursting with headache, he lost consciousness.

Jane burst into the room. For obvious reasons she hadn't been able to reach the last room immediately, but luckily, she only had to solve the potions riddle. She burst into the room just in time to see whatever was left of Voldemort fleeing, and then heard the door bursting open again. It was nearly blasted out of its hinges. Dumbledore entered and walked to the still figures she had missed when she entered, and she silently thanked her shield. If the fast pace he was using to check on Harry was anything to go by, this was serious. Jane tried reaching out to Harry, but she couldn't find him at first. It took her a few minutes to calm enough to find his weak presence, and she silently breathed a sigh of relieve. She followed them up to the hospital wing. As Madame Pomfrey ushered them out, she quickly sent word to Henry. The rescue action wasn't necessary now.

It took eight hours before Madame Pomfrey emerged again. She looked dead on her feet. Dumbledore, joined by the Heads of the Houses and, unbeknownst to them, by Jane, got up.

"Severe magical exhaustion as you said, Albus. The prisoners in Azkaban have probably more reserves then he has right now after several Draughts", Madame Pomfrey stated grimly.

"Will he live?", asked McGonagall tensely.

"I'm not sure, Minerva. His in bad state. I've done what I can, but if his fever doesn't come down fast, I won't be able to do anything for him, I ran out of Draughts."

"I'll make some more, then.", Snape said and left immediately.

"And mister Weasley and miss Granger?", Dumbledore asked.

"Mister Weasley has a concussion, I'd like to keep him overnight. I'm going to keep miss Granger, though she only had to take a calming draught and a Dreamless Sleep, I don't think it is wise to let her go back to her dorm. Mister Longbottom already left; he is fine."

"Can we see mister Potter?", McGonagall asked briskly. Jane had the impression that was her natural state. Madame Pomfrey nodded, and they entered, Jane still invisible with them.

**Next update is scheduled for 30****th**** November. See you then, and please: review if you have time!**


	10. Chapter 10

**So, here we are again. Hopefully we can wrap up first year, and have one of the last troublesome scenes here. From now on, I promise, it will only get better. I'll probably not be able to upload until February, because I have exams.**

Harry enjoyed Ron and Hermione's visit very much, even though he was glad to see them leave, as he was still tired. He had managed to talk to Hermione alone when she was talking him though the days he missed from her point of view – she had come early; Ron was still asleep – and told him she hadn't heard from Jane. That was strange. Not only she hadn't come bursting through the doors, but also, she hadn't come to check on him. The first one was explainable if she had seen Dumbledore coming, she would have stayed out of sight. She didn't entirely trust Snape, and the less people new who she was the better. But not even a sneak peek at night, that was strange. Hermione hadn't heard a thing from her either. Harry eventually fell asleep after an hour.

Harry had enjoyed the ride to King's Cross with his friends. He and Neville also had had their first real talk of the year, when Neville came to visit him in the infirmary, and they had decided to keep in touch. Harry felt like Neville was a nice guy, just a little shy. He supposed that he only needed friends to come out of his shell, and he hoped Jane would help him get some ideas of how to do that.

At King's Cross, a pleasant surprise waited. Henry stood there, a little apart from the crowd. He looked tired, so Harry assumed they still were working on the case that had addressed itself on the first of September. As he said goodbye to his friends, he waited until the crowd had passed and walked over to Henry, who smiled a bit.

"Fully recovered, I hear?"

Harry groaned. "I should have known it. Do you doctors gossip around about patients or something?"

"No, Jane asked for back-up when she left."

Frowning, Harry said: "She didn't wait for them? She should have…"

Henry interrupted: "You were in danger. Yes, she should have waited, but you too. You shouldn't have gone down there in the first place, Harry. You could have faced Voldemort for all you know…" Noticing the look on Harry's face, Henry said: "Merlin, no… You have seen Voldemort there? Lovely. We are going to talk."

As they walked to the car, Harry asked: "Where is Jane? I haven't seen her in a while…" Noticing the distraught look on Henry's face, he stops talking and waits until they get in the car. Henry just sits there, not starting the car, but not talking either. Harry waits, worried.

"Elias, Jane's ex, escaped in September. We investigated that ever since, but we still don't have a clue. The night you got injured, Jane didn't come home." All Harry can do is sit there, wide-eyed until he saw that they were not going home. Home, he marvelled, was for him not Privet Drive. It was Jane's house, where he was treated like a human being.

"Where are we going?", he asked.

"To the crisis centre. When we looked through Jane's notes, she had found a place where her ex had been staying. When they went to check it out, it was full of pictures of you. We think he might be after you, now. So, we are going to hide you."

Harry didn't know what to say.

Harry stepped into the crisis centre, that seemed to be bursting with action. Henry guided him quickly to where their boss was sitting. With a start, Harry recognised Tom, who had been helping them when Jane was accused of Myriam's murder. He nodded and waited until Tom finished his call, it seemed like Tom was asking for more resources.

"Harry! How was your year at the boarding school?", Tom asked

"Good enough.", Harry answered.

"So… Jane and the team where investigating her ex disappearance. They did their best, but they didn't find a lot. There were no leads… until Jane noticed that people involved in their break-up seemed to be disappearing. She deliberately kept you in the dark as she thought your first year of boarding school was stressful enough as it was. She disappeared five days ago. We are trying to find out where she was going that night, and we found a hiding place. There were pictures of you everywhere and traces of Jane's DNA. She was nowhere to be found. We try to determine where they went from there. We are going to put you in a secured house."

Harry nodded.

"I need you to promise me you won't go looking for him in person."

"I have to. She would have done the same for me."

"Listen," Henry interrupted, "I know it's hard, but you have to. If it was the other way around, you wouldn't want Jane to go after him either. You would want her to be safe. You have to realise, we care about you, too. Your friends at the boarding school, Lara, Tom here, the team, I… We all want you to be safe. We need you to do this for us, so we can focus on getting Jane back. We need you to stay safe."

Tom nodded. "You can have access to all our documents about the case, but we need you to stay out of it."

Harry sighed, and then nodded again. They were right.

Three days later, Harry got a package at his secret home. It was in the middle of muggle London, as they thought it best to hide in plain sight. His protectors were lying dead in the garden. Harry breathed a heavy sigh before opening it. He knew it could contain a tracking device, or poison even, but he had to know, and he had to leave as this place was obviously no longer safe. He was instantly glad he hadn't eaten. Inside it, he found a spleen. He grabbed his backpack, the package and a few dry supplies he wouldn't need to heat up and left immediately.

Henry, Tom and Lara were talking their option through, when word came in Harry's protectors didn't call in. They kept an irregular scheme on that combine with multiple panic buttons. There was no response. Tom sent out a team as fast as they could, but they found nothing besides a bit of blot and two dead protectors. It was silent in Tom's office for a while, until Lara said what they all thought.

"We have a mole. That's got to be it. Nobody from beside the team knew where Harry was, not even his aunt and uncle, Harry said he didn't want to tell them. So, we got a problem. On a brighter note, we don't know if Harry left voluntarily. And I think he did."

"Why?", Tom asked. He didn't see how she came to that conclusion.

"All Elias wants is to prove he is the alfa male. He has to prove his superiority over Harry. He sent Harry a message of some kind, as a challenge to find Jane combined with some kind of deadline."

"But why hasn't he contacted us?", Tom asked.

"He doesn't know who to trust. He might not even think so logically. Harry is eleven, his best friend is abducted, there is killer after him. That same killer was very close, and someone in the team who is supposed to protect him, is working with that killer. If that is not enough to influence your decision making, I don't know what is.", Henry said.

Harry was slightly out of breath. From the safe house he had taken a cab to the nearest train station. He knew he would be tracked. He had bought a card for a certain line with a credit card, went to another and took the bus with cash while pretending to be with someone else. He picked at random a deserted bus station and took another cab from there to Jane's house. He figured it would be an obvious go-to-place, and as such an unlikely place for him to be. At least he hoped that. If he was wrong, he would dy. But he wasn't wrong.

He had chosen this place because Jane had an interest for forensics, and even had a small lab. He knew how to work there. He would extract DNA from the spleen, and use his own as comparison. He also took some DNA from the hairs in her hairbrush. Then he compared them. There was no doubt that the first test came back positive. He ran another comparative DNA test, but that was more detailed and would take more time. Harry started a cell culture and started some tests on that one too, before he went to sleep.

He woke up more refreshed, six hours later. A long time for his standard, as he had trouble sleeping after what happened to Quirrel and the Elias out there. Now he was thinking more clearly, he went to Jane's office in that house. Harry had just come to think that this place was on Jane's way home. She could come here easily if she was working on something that she didn't want to tell yet, because she was unsure of how it would work out. And indeed, there was a whole lot of files to go through.

A few hours later, he took a deep breath. He had found his mole. Elias was not the brain after this, he was working for another serial killer. Harry briefly wondered how they all seemed to cross their path, but shook the idea off. Because that other serial killer was the psychologist Tom had hired for his people. As they took on heavy crimes sometimes, like murders, and because some of them were minors, he had hired someone to talk to. And she was their mole. She was after them. Harry sighed, and went to check on his tests.

Henry, Lara and Tom went to have breakfast. They sat with their eyes at the door. They ordered though nobody felt hungry, and watched the waitress walk away with their orders. When they turned around, they saw Harry sitting there. It took them a while to recover from the shock, but Jane was the first.

"Harry! Are you all right?" As he nodded, she continued: "What happened?"

So, Harry told them what he had found, and they came up with a plan. Their psychologist didn't come every day, but she would come in two days. They would spread the rumour Harry was tracked down to Ireland, where Henry had a bunker. The perfect hide-out. Then, they would carefully follow her and hopefully she would lead them straight to Jane.

Their plan had worked. Jane had spent six days in that killer's presence. All the time being tortured. But they had found her, and most things had been toxins. It had taken them a day to get them out of her system, and Jane was much better now. She still wouldn't come home soon, but at least she was awake and safe. Elias had been killed; the serial killer was in a mental facility. Harry had kept his promise and the specialised agents had rescued Jane. He stopped at Jane's door in the hospital. He wondered if she should reserve a bed there.

"Come in", she called. Her voice was still weak.

"Hi.", Harry said uncomfortably.

"You look tired, but otherwise healthy", Jane observed. He nodded. "There's something on your mind that you don't dare to shoot off just like that, now I'm injured. Just get on with it, Harry."

Harry sat down and thought a bit about how to start.

"When I heard, I wanted to do everything I could to go find you. Tom and Henry explained that they needed me to stay safe. And I realised… I want the same for you."

Jane looked like she didn't understand.

"You went to Elias. He didn't abduct you; you went there deliberately. Because he threatened me. You are too smart to just walk in on such an easy trap. But you knew about that serial killer, or you suspected it. Which means you knew you were walking towards someone who wants to kill you. As did I, this year. But there is a difference. I had limited time and tried to call in your help, but you didn't even do that. Jane… It's been a year since the whole story with Elias. It's been a year since Myriam died. You haven't continued living, Jane. You don't enjoy anything, not anymore. You don't value your life anymore. And I want to help you. I tried, Jane. But you don't let me. I can't…" his voice broke, o Merlin, why did his voice break? He took a deep breath, determined to finish.

"I can't watch you destroy yourself anymore. I need you to let someone help you. Because after all you have been through, you should have some form of counselling, Jane. Please."

"Who do you think you are?!", she shouted. "What right do you have…"

"The right every friend has. You would have done the same. You don't want to be helped, that is a right you still have. But I will not stand by and watch you destroy yourself. Jane, you mean the world too me. Therefore, I can not do that. So, I have to say this: goodbye. I will not see you anymore until you have helped yourself, because I can not help you if you don't help yourself."

With that Harry left. He didn't even make it until the end of the corridor before he burst into tears. For years, he had tried to help Jane through her sad days. He had tried to make clear how much he valued her in his life, how much he cared about her like a big sister. But it didn't work. And now, he needed to be strong for her. This was the only way to show her what she was doing wrong.

Harry stayed in his room in Jane's house the rest of the day, without speaking to anyone. And the next four days. He had no plans of changing that, until he heard a knock on the door. As he looked up through the open door, he saw Henry there.

"I don't know what happened between you and Jane… But I think you should know that she asked me to look into psychiatric clinics close to Hogsmeade."

Harry looked surprised, then smiled faintly. "I couldn't watch her destroy herself anymore. It was my fault anyways."

"It was not," Henry said sharply.

"Jane went there because my life was in danger. Not only for the threat that Elias was and is, but also because she was upset because I was injured. To keep her safe, I need to keep myself safe."

"She is not the only one who cares, you know. I've said it before: your friends, Lara, Tom, I and of course your aunt and uncle." Harry only just managed to keep a straight face after that. Henry smiled and left Harry on his own, thinking.

**And, so ends year one! Until February, or maybe I can get a short chapter up sooner… I find it quite long. So, no promises, but I'll try. **


	11. Chapter 11

**To Guest: I realise you are right with your review. So, I've tried to do better this time, I've rewritten the chapter partly.**

**I would like to remind you all, if there's something specific you don't like, if there's something you don't understand, if you don't agree… Let me now, I'll look into it.**

**So, I've managed to write another chapter! I can't believe my own eyes… Next update will be in the second week of February, I hope. I have a question, too: witch House do you think Jane should be in, at Hogwarts?**

Harry sat outside in the sun. He enjoyed being here, because it was very different from being at the Dursleys. But now, he was outside to think. He had a dilemma. Actually, he would normally talk to Jane about something like this. But now, that was the issue. Could he give her false hope? Did he have the right to decide which info she got? Harry sighed.

"That was a deep sigh", Henry said.

Harry looked at him like he hadn't seen him in years. Of course, he could ask Henry!

"I've got a dilemma."

"Oh? Can I help you out?"

"As a matter of fact, yes.", Harry answered. "You remember that I did a test in Janes lab, to confirm it was her spleen?" Henry nodded, a sour look on his face. "I used my DNA as a reference – yes, I know you shouldn't! – and… There is no good way to say this… There was a match."

Henry looked stunned.

"I sent for a more accurate test to be carried out… but do I need to tell Jane?"

"What do you think?", Henry asked slowly.

"I'm going to wait for the second result."

"You can ask for those kind of thing… Either one of your parents must have had a brother or a sister to give this result. Their children of Jane and Lara. If the test is right."

"I'm going to tell Lara", Harry said. "She deserves to know just like her sister, but right now Jane can't handle the truth."

Lara was in her room. Standing before it's door, Harry was glad he had brought Henry. They nocked, and went in. Lara looked up, clearly worried.

"Your sister's fine.", Harry said. Looking to Henry for help, because he thought he would never be able to tell this. How in the world did you tell an orphan you might have found their parents, and that you are related? Luckily, Henry caught on.

"We've got something to talk about, though. Mind if we sit down?"

Harry thought that was a bit weird, but he remembered then that Henry treated Jane's and Lara's rooms like they were their respective houses, to create a safe area. Lara's past in the orphanage meant she was used to sharing everything, so she needed to learn some things where her own. She had only stayed there for about three weeks. Jane, on the other hand, needed a safe area after being held hostage by the Death Eaters, the very people who had tortured her and had done Merlin-knows-what-else.

"So, you know we had to check that… clue Harry got? It needed to be confirmed it was Jane's." Lara nodded. "There was a match with the reference." Henry said bluntly.

It took Lara a while to phrase a question. "Who was the reference person?"

"I was.", Harry said, watching her warily.

A moment of stunned silence. "You're… family?" Harry nodded. "Well… all purebloods are family, so- "

"Lara", Henry said "Harry is your nephew."

Another awkward silence, then Lara smiled. "Well, it's a good thing I already considered you family, isn't it?"

Harry was stunned. He had never been talking that much with Lara. They were friend, sure, but not like Jane was. He smiled back hesitantly.

"I've got one more thing, before I'll leave you to it.", Henry said. Harry expected a surge of adrenaline at that – talking with his niece, for the first time since he knew! – but he didn't. It didn't feel as awkward as when he had come in. "We all know Jane is not in the best of shape…"

"You want to keep it quiet?", Lara frowned.

"Until we have the new test results, then we are sure. I don't want to risk it.", Henry said. Harry was glad he agreed.

"So, it's not sure yet?", Lara asked.

"About 90% sure, Lara, but I need nearly 100 before I'll tell her. She really is not doing well, and the last thing she needs – "

"I understand, Henry, truly.", Lara said.

Henry stood up and left the room at that. An hour later, he came back and hear them talking animatedly, and most important: laughing. He was glad Lara took it well. He made sure he didn't actually understand what they were saying; they needed privacy. He smiled, and left.

Harry was extremely busy the next days. The light meltdown he had expected from Lara stayed out, she agreed not to tell her sister until they were sure. He filed a request for information about his relatives with the muggle authorities. He and Lara spent the entire next day after the information came reading demographic reports. And there it was – a birth certificate.

"Look at this, Harry.", Lara said. They had only just begun and she was waving with a birth certificate. "Rosemary Evans. Sister of Petunia and Lily Evans. Born in France…"

It took more spitting through the records, which were mostly quite boring. But then-

"Look at this.", Harry said. "Rosemary has requested a passport for France in the summer before she became eleven, and has continued to do so until she was fourteen."

"Probably gone to Beaxbatons…", Lara said to herself. Seeing his look, she explained that it was a magical boarding school in France.

"But why has she stopped returning? Her parents where here, her sisters where here…", Harry said. Lara shrugged, and suggested she filed an apply for information in France.

Another week later, Lara and Harry where sitting in her room, staring at the paperwork she got.

"You sure you want to do this with me? I can leave…"

"No. It's your family, too. You have the right to know."

They started. It was not long before Lara called out.

"Look at this. My grandparents where on a trip in France, when Rosemary was born. She was premature."

While Lara looked at the papers of the hospital she was born in, Harry looked at some other medical paperwork.

"I've found why she stopped coming back. She had a long problem, according to this, because she was premature, probably. That was only discovered when she was eleven, probably because of the sudden change of the fresh mountain air to London. But it got increasingly worse. Her parents and doctors noted the fresh mountain air was good on her, so they decided to go visit her instead."

Reading all the medical paperwork took half a day. There had been extensive testing. Her parents had clearly tried their best to get her cured, and if not, make her as comfortable possible.

It was Lara who found out she had been married, after lunch.

"Rosemary Evans, married to Sam Johnson…", she whispered distractedly. Next where the birth certificates of Mary and Arya Johnson.

"Should I call you Mary, now?", Harry asked hesitantly.

"No. It's dangerous. I'm supposed to be dead. If I'm not, the Death Eaters might find out about Jane… She has seen them without their masks, she could identify the inner circle…"

"Then why doesn't she?", Harry asked curiously.

"We know they all have ties with the Prime Minister, and other well-placed people, including the Wizengamot. It would lead to nothing, and it would put Jane in danger."

It was Harry who found the next important thing, and he groaned inwardly.

"Lara?", he asked hesitantly. She looked up, and came reading over his shoulder. The death certificates were the hardest to get through, and they decided to take a break for dinner - not that either of them was hungry. They both were glad no autopsy report was included, nor a report about the crime scene. After dinner, they ploughed quietly through the last paperwork. The last paper was the biggest surprise.

"What is this now?", Lara wondered out loud. Harry looked up from paperwork he was studying. It appeared the house Rosemary and Sam had lived in was given to an organisation that helped Muggleborns who had fled magical Britain, using it as a safe house.

"She had a diplomatic position…", she said, trailing off.

"Oh? Which one?", Harry asked curiously.

"She was the ambassador in Britain for magical France. It's modified, so to Muggles it looks like a regular ambassador…"

They decided to call it a day, and owl the French magical ministry for information. A week later, Harry found Lara in the garden, staring blankly at the horizon.

"Lara?", he asked carefully.

She looked up, and smiled. "I got answer from the French ambassador – or actually, the interim French ambassador. Apparently, the position is passed down from mother to daughter. So… while they thought we were dead, someone had the position, but it's offered now."

"And, do you think you want to do it?"

Lara chuckled. "No, I'm not the one with patience, this… is well outside my skills set. I can't. But that means it will go to Jane…"

"You know, Lara, you can't do something you don't want so that Jane doesn't have to do it."

She nodded, looking down. "I know, I know… It's just hard." They sat in silence for a while. "Well, I've got to go, we're going to inform Jane. The results were in this morning. We're definitely family, Harry."

Harry nodded. It wasn't a surprise, really, but this made it kind of official – as official as it would ever get. Both Lara and Jane would keep their names, because a Death Eater might try to kidnap them, so that they had something to put Harry under pressure with. Not to mention Jane's story would come out. Just then, he noticed something.

"What's that?"

"Oh… Apparently, they found diaries Rosemary kept. I… I just can't bring myself to read them. They where found after some of the Death Eaters that tortured them were arrested. I read a piece, and she described what happened… And I just couldn't, not that part or any other part."

Harry nodded. He could imagine.

"Do you want them? She was your aunt…"

Harry thought how he should phrase this best. "I think you should offer them to Jane, I know you're afraid of what it will do to her, but you have to give her a chance. She's not going to be happy, when if she finds out you hadn't offered."

"You're right… You're right, indeed. Thanks for everything, Harry." And with that, she stood up and walked to the car, Henry putting an arm around her and waving at Harry. Harry just nodded and smile, to he didn't feel like it. He would've like to see Jane again, but she was not allowed to receive visits from non-family members, as he officially still was.

Lara told him later Jane had taken it quite stoically, since she was still taking a lot of medication. But she happily accepted the diaries and letters the French government had sent. Jane was thinking about becoming the ambassador – she didn't want to rush that decision.

Harry was staring at the wall. He couldn't believe it! The Hogwarts Express had parted, without him nor Ron. They couldn't get through; they were drawing attention… He suggested to go wait by the car, which led Ron to think about flying it to Hogwarts. Harry thought fast. He didn't think it was a good idea… Just like telling him about Jane. Ron would be in danger. But he already was, Harry thought sadly. Ron's family as a whole was a target, and Ron, too, because of him. That was the reason he didn't want to let them on about Quirrell last year. That reminded him of Lockheart; from what he had seen, the only improvement was that Voldemort would never share with such a fool. He remembered going to shop for their books quite clearly, certainly after the incident with the floo – wait, the floo!

"Come on, I have a better idea." Harry said.

He walked with Ron to the railway station, took a train to Little Whinging. It was a good thing Harry had money for situations like this, he thought. He told Ron he had a solid plan, but couldn't tell him already. He saw Ron looking doubtful, but thankfully he trusted Harry enough.

Not much later, they were walking to a house. For Harry, it felt like home, just like Hogwarts. He was talking to Ron about next school year, until-

"Get behind that tree!", he yelled at Ron, drawing his wand immediately.

"Nice one, Harry James Potter.", a familiar voice said.

"Jane", he signed, "we come in piece. He's a friend."

"Then let him come out", she signed back, after a while.

"Ron, meet Jane. Jane, Ron.", he said, keeping a firm eye on her. He knew she would try to read their intents in both their emotions, just to be sure Harry wasn't forced to do anything against his will. And that went better with eye-contact.

"Nice to meet you.", she said to Ron. "I've seen his father at the ministry, I believe. Nice man.", she signed to Harry. Harry remembered that after she chose to be the ambassador, she had been introduced to the government.

"Hello", Ron said a little awkwardly, eying her curiously. "What are you doing?"

"Oh dear, I didn't know you don't know British Sign Language… Well it's not a common thing, among wizards…", Jane said, ushering them on towards the house. She heard Ron try to say something, but Harry shushed him. Good, Jane thought. You never know who listens outside…

"We missed the train", Ron burst out, once inside.

"How come?", she asked. Being late didn't seem like it, then the Weasley parents would've apparated them.

"The passage was closed.", Harry said. "Can we use your floo?"

"Of course. You can floo to my place in Hogsmeade, then you can simply join the others from the station. I'll have some house-elves deliver your belongings."

They both where relieved. It had taken them quite some time to get here, especially because they were trying to avoid police men.

"Ron, dear, would you be so kind to go find my house-elf? I'm afraid she's a little old and doesn't hear so well.", Jane said. She waited until he had left, and turned to Harry. Before she could say anything, he said: "since when are you back?"

"First off, I'm not 'back'. I'm on leave. As I would be too late to see you, I've asked Henry and Lara to keep it quiet."

Harry nodded in understanding. "How are you?"

"I'm… Well… It's hard. I never took the time to… process, I guess. Not after my parents were killed, because I was held hostage. Not when I came here, I was working. Not when Myriam died… I was trying not to be prosecuted. Not when we nearly died, I buried myself in work, trying not to think about having to tell you what happened on Halloween. Just… never. And it couldn't go well. You were right to point that out to me. I shouldn't have reacted the way I did. I'm sorry, Harry. I should've sought out help sooner. People where telling me already… And the consequences where not just on me… You having to go through all that… But also, Henry and Lara… I'll have to remember that there actually are people that care about me, beyond my 'gift'."

Harry knew she didn't look at it as a gift. And to be honest, neither did he. Remembering everything? Seeing person's emotions? Reading minds? Being able to produce a shield? No, he would pass.

Just on time, Ron and the house-elf came back. But Harry felt a lot better, now all had been forgiven.

They got back just in time to join the others. Nobody noticed that Harry Potter and Ron Weasley weren't on the train, but did join the feast. Only Hermione, and she was smart enough not to point it out, thinking Harry was with Jane and Ron had simply missed the train, and his parents would take care of that. Luckily, they lost no points, but they did tell Hermione about Dobby and the train, in a corner of the common room.


	12. Chapter 12

**I'm sorry for the many uploads of last chapter. As was kindly pointed out to me, I summarised quite a lot. I wrote those things out. If any of you have a remark, a question, a piece of advice; please let me know in the reviews or via PM. On to the next chapter! If anyone has an idea about Jane's Hogwarts house, let me know **

The next morning, the trio left to breakfast. Harry hadn't had the chance to talk to Ron about Jane, but he knew he would need to. Then, he saw professor McGonagall approaching.

"Mister Potter, mister Weasley. Come with me." She walked away. Harry leaned in, so called to grab his bag, and said to Ron: "not a word about Jane – I'll explain." Thankfully, Ron merely nodded. They arrived in an empty classroom, and Harry felt nauseous. He would have to lie to his professor…

"The trolley witch has not seen you on the train. Neither has any prefect. Where have you boys been? How did you come to Hogwarts?", she asked sternly.

"Floo." Harry said simply. "We missed the train."

"Really? All the other Weasley's didn't."

"Well… I had lost a book on the way to the gate, I went back to find it and then the barrier was closed, we missed the train. So, we decided to go on our own accord.", Harry said, trying to sound calm. Technically, this was not a lie – he only made it appear as if the barrier had been closed because they were too late. He had indeed lost a book, when he collided with the entrance… And yet, he didn't think McGonagall would see it that way.

"So, you went back with the Weasley parents…", McGonagall started.

"No," Harry interrupted, "we first saw someone else." He remembered something Jane had taught him: the best lies are those that are the closest to the truth. He thought quickly; who could have let them use their floo?

"Mister Lovegood.", Ron interrupted. "We then used his floo to the Three Broomsticks. Madame Rosmerta was in the cellar, so we decided not to disturb her and just leave quietly."

Professor McGonagall looked suspicious. "Well, if that is what happened… Be more careful with your books next time, Mr Potter. And certainly, more mindful of the time. Of you go."

They started with Herbology. The trio left early, and Harry steered them to an empty classroom. Looking at Ron, and taking a deep breath, he said: "You've met Jane now. She is my friend since a long time. Her parents were attacked by Death Eaters. Everyone thought all four of them had died – she has an elder sister – but the two kids survived. The Death Eaters kept her hostage, but she managed to escape. But since everyone thinks they're dead, as few people as possible can know about her existence. She knows to many Death Eaters, has seen them without mask. I don't know if McGonagall has known her parents, but I do know this is the safest way." Harry sighed. "Can I trust you to keep this quiet? No one is to know. Her safety depends on it."

"I've learned horseback riding from her, amongst other things.", Hermione added. "That's how Harry and I already knew each other. I pretended to be the way I was back then, so you would stay away from me. If people knew I knew Harry, they might be looking into me, and they would have found Jane. But after the incident with the troll, I couldn't pretend anymore. It would've been more suspicious."

Ron stood there, open-mouthed. "I'll keep it quiet, mate. But…", he hesitated, and Harry waved him on. "Does she have someone to look after her? She didn't look to good."

"Yes.", Harry simply said. "We need to get going."

Then he thought of something. "Wo are the Lovegoods?"

"The Lovegoods are a family who live nearby. Luna Lovegood is a friend of Ginny; she's sorted in Ravenclaw. Her mother died and she often came around."

Harry nodded, and they went to Herbology.

The rest of the school week didn't go any better, and he was glad he was able to sneak off to see Jane, who was back in her house at Hogsmeade. The first day, he had found a note Jane had slid in his pocket, saying she would be all Sunday nights in her house in Hogsmeade. He already had a lot to tell her… He quickly opened the door with the key she had slipped in his pocket with the note – he really should pay more attention – and walked to the living room, smiling and giving Jane a hug.

"How was your week?" His smile faltered already.

"Well… You know, our Defence teacher is a real idiot that goes by the name Gilderoy Lockheart."

She groaned. "You're more likely to learn something from a trashcan in Muggle London."

Harry grimaced. "He seems to love my fame, really. Private talks, pictures…"

"Is he, now?" She said, sounding dangerous. "If need be, punch him in the nose and threaten him with your wand, if you think he's crossing borders. Don't let him mess with you; it's probably the only language he understands."

Harry hesitated, but he didn't want to tell her about Dobby's warning, nor about the murmurs. Nothing had happened, he didn't want to worry her. It probably was nothing – but his inner voice asked him why he was giving it so much thought, then. He ignored it, and they spent the time talking about nothing special.

Harry not telling Jane what happened only lasted until Halloween. He shook his head, while he was walking to her house. This was not going to be easy… It was a good thing she had told him that she would come on Halloween, too; she had said nothing about it, but he knew it was because she wanted to be closed that night. Certainly, after the troll of last year. He went in, Jane looked up from the book she was reading. One look on his face and she put it away, motioning for him to take a seat.

"I've got something to tell you.", he said, hesitantly. He didn't know how she was going to take this. She just raised an eyebrow and motioned for him to continue. "Today, after the deathday party… I heard a voice." Surprise showed in her expression, but she said nothing, waiting patiently for him to continue. "It was talking about killing, smelling blood and… I followed it." Jane raised an eyebrow, but kept quiet. "And then we found Mrs. Norris, Filch's cat… She has been petrified."

Jane sat up, "Petrified? According to who?", she asked sharply.

"Dumbledore."

"I had hope for a while… If it was that fool Lockheart, it's probably something entirely else. But I don't doubt professor Dumbledore on Dark Arts." She sighed. "But that's not the point. Harry, what have you done wrong?"

He looked at her quizzically.

"You went after a voice that talked about blood and killing, alone- "

"With Ron and Hermione- ", he interrupted.

"It should have been an adult!"

Harry looked down. Jane rarely raised her voice, and he hadn't told her everything yet… She noticed his expression.

"There is more?!", she exclaimed.

"Well… Before I left the Dursleys, a house elf came to warn me terrible things where to happen at Hogwarts, and that I shouldn't go back.", he said carefully.

She looked thoughtful. "Let me summarise, okay?" She counted down on her fingers. "You were warned by a house elf. The barrier was closed. You heard murmurs, and a cat is petrified. That about sums it up?"

"Well…"

"I take that as a no. Please, continue."

"I heard the murmurs in the first week at Hogwarts, late at night. But Ron nor Hermione heard something, not then and not now."

Jane looked lost in thought.

"Maybe I'm just crazy…", Harry whispered.

"No", Jane said decidedly, "the whispers led you to the place of an attack. No mental disease could have done that, because any form of hallucination is your brain trying to show you something – but this part of information wasn't available for your brain. So, no hallucination."

Harry hesitated, and then just threw it out. "Unless I did attack- "

"No. You said yourself; you were at the deathday party. The cat couldn't be there long, it is too close to the Great Hall for that."

Harry felt relieved.

"What did Dumbledore say when you told him about the voice?", she asked, calmer now. Harry flushed and looked down. "You didn't tell him." She looked thoughtful, then she said: "I can't really help you with this one, Harry. I don't know enough about Dark Arts for that. I'll ask Henry, if you agree?" Harry nodded. "Good. How was the rest of the term?"

They chatted the rest of the evening, and Harry felt much better by the time he left.

"You what?!", Jane half shouted.

Harry sighed. "I need a place to brew Polyjuice Potion. And some ingredients. I can pay you back- "

"It's not about the money! Why in the world would you need that?", she repeated sharply. Harry closed his eyes and she noticed the downtrodden look on his face. Dropping on the couch beside him, she leaned in and said: "What happened, Harry?"

Still with his eyes closed, he started explaining. "Colin Creevey, a first year who adores me, is petrified. They brought him to the hospital wing this morning- "

"What where you doing there?", she asked worriedly.

"Well… That's another strange thing. A Bludger during the match only aimed for me."

"Someone cursed it… I hope you asked for an investigation?", she asked. Harry looked sheepish. "I'll take that as a no, then", she sighed.

"It was only because my own foolishness I got hurt - I stayed still too long. I broke my arm."

She frowned. "I'm surprised she kept you overnight for that." Harry shot her a wary look.

"There's no need to freak out, okay?", he said, eying her worriedly.

"Got that. Nothing to worry."

"Lockheart vanished the bones in my arm."

"He did what!?", she shouted for real this time. "Oh, my, I don't care what I need to do but I'll make him pay for that."

"What is it you hold against him?", he asked curiously.

"It's just… The way he likes his fame, the way he talks to the public… He just completely rubs me the wrong way. If he did half of what he said, I'll drop death."

"Don't. I need you.", Harry said, smiling faintly. She motioned for him to finish his story. "Dobby – the house-elf who warned me this summer – apparated and admitted to manipulating the Bludger and closing the passage to the Hogwarts Express. Then, professor Dumbledore and professor McGonagall came in with Colin. He had a camera and grapes with him when he was found. I think – and so does McGonagall – that he tried to visit me and was attacked. Either way, this is a human victim. He could've died. I need to do something."

Jane sighed. "I suppose he didn't have a picture of his attacker?"

Harry shook his head. "No, the camera melted."

"I'll give that information to Henry. And why would _you_ need to do something?"

"Because it would be my fault if he died! He only wanted me to notice him, to be friends. Look at where it got him. He could've easily died; he would be the second death- "

"If you're talking about Quirrell- ", Jane interrupted.

"It was my fault.", Harry whispered. He stared absently into the fire. Jane said nothing, though she disagreed. "He kept yelling- and I... I killed him."

Jane looked up to him. "Harry, suppose I'm working again, and someone attacks me with a knife. I get a hold of it, and then I see him getting another one. I stab him, and he bleeds out. Am I a murderer?"

"No.", he said after a minute. "But this is different- "

"How though? You used magic to keep someone from uttering a deadly curse. You defended yourself, and yes, maybe your actions cost him his life. But let's be honest, how long do you think he would've continued to live, with Voldemort sticking out of his head?"

"Voldemort would've stayed. They would've caught him.", Harry stated.

"Bullshit. How would you contain him? He is not corporal.", Jane said. Harry looked thoughtful. She pressed on. "You defended yourself from an attempt on your life, and you had to do the most gruesome thing someone could possibly do. But you had no choice. I would've done the same." After a while, Harry nodded. Jane could tell he was not entirely convinced, but it would come. "And neither is Colin's attack. Why don't you leave it to the professors?"

"Because this is illegal. They can't do it!", Harry said firmly.

"Then maybe it's a sign neither should you!", she answered. "What are you planning on doing with Polyjuice Potion anyway?"

"We want to infiltrate the Slytherin common room. We can hear Malfoy out as Crabbe and Goyle. He was in a right mood after the match, but even if it wasn't him: this comes from a group that is against muggleborns. So are Voldemort's followers. Is it so far-fetched that those are one and the same group?"

After a while, Jane sighed and nodded. "Fine. You can use a room in this house. I'll fetch the supplies, all of them, and monitor your progress."

"Thank you. I'll pay you back.", Harry said, relieved.

"I have a condition." Harry's smile faltered. "You need to brew it, without Hermione's help."

Not much later, both Harry and Jane left. Harry to Hogwarts, Jane to her house in London, where Henry would be. She recounted what Harry had told her, and after she finished her story, they both stayed silent for a while.

"I've got to admit, I'm confused as to why you would let Harry brew it. You know if they don't manage it under your supervision, they will try another way", Henry remarked. It was best to start with the easiest things.

"It's simply because he is not working up to his potential for Potions. I want to force him to do something about that. Helping his friend is one of the strongest motivators for him.", she replied evenly.

"The rest of your news is more troubling. I've still got no clue as to what is petrifying the students. I've gone through a lot of books by now, but I still haven't found it. It would help if we knew who Dobby's owner is, but purebloods don't speak of their elves so freely, seeing them as some lower form of life. In other words, we are getting nowhere."

Jane nodded. "Well, high time for me to get going- "

"Have you thought about the position?"

"Yeah… I would like being the ambassador, certainly because there will be a lot of support in the beginning, but I don't know how to break it to Harry, he doesn't like politics."

Henry stared incredulously. "What teenager does? I don't think he will say anything… What is the problem truly, Jane?"

She stayed silent for a while. "I'm afraid he will say I'm taking on too much, so soon after… Well, you know. And if he does, I'm afraid I'll react like I did last time- I was downright mean, Henry! And- "

"Stop it, Jane! You lost your temper, once. That happens to all of us. No one is perfect, and that's all right. Now, if he reacts badly – and only if – then you count to then in your head, and you _talk_ with him. That's all.", Henry said comfortingly, stepping closer to her. She sighed, and nodded.

"But not today, Henry.", she said tiredly. "I'm going back to the mental facility now."

Henry nodded, and waited until she closed the door before sighing deeply. He _did_ hope everything turned out well.

A week before Christmas*, Harry comes running into the house in Hogsmeade. Jane, who had finally completed therapy (though, she still would have some sessions, just not staying overnight anymore), came out of the room in surprise. They hadn't agreed to meet, and the potion was looking good. Harry seemed not to notice her as he ran upstairs, into his room, and slammed the door shut. Frowning, she decided to let him cool down for a moment. An hour later, she knocked.

"Go away!"

Jane frowned to herself, and opened the door with a quick _Alohomora_. Harry was sitting against the wall, staring out of the window. She sat beside him, and waited a bit. Then she sighed.

"Are you going to tell me what happened?", she asked quietly.

"You're going to hate me.", he mumbled.

"Well, you don't know that until you try.", she said airily.

Harry sighed. "I'm a Parselmouth."

Jane worked hard to keep her expression neutral. "And?"

"And?" Harry burst out. "And?! They all think I'm some evil wizard, only evil wizards have that ability- "

"It is not the ability that matters, it is how you use it.", she said sharply.

"The Hat wanted to put me in Slytherin.", he muttered.

"Well… You have some traits Slytherin likes. But look at it this way, Harry: nobody is just smart or loyal or brave or cunning. We all have multiple traits. But it's not those traits that define us. It's what we do with them."

"People think I'm the heir of Slytherin."

It took a while before she realised what he was talking about. Then she sighed deeply. "Kids can be cruel." Looking at him for the first time since she entered, she added: "Technically, it doesn't matter what strangers think. It matters what your friends think, and we are behind you, Harry. You only have to look in the right direction, and we will be there. Always."

Finally, Harry looked up. She was shocked to see tears on his face, but at least he stopped crying. Taking a deep breath, he said: "There was another attack. The Gryffindor ghost and the kid I supposedly set a snake upon. Dumbledore asked some questions, but I didn't say anything."

Jane looked thoughtful. "There are three things that come to my attention. First, what has changed? Why is the chamber open now, and not for say last year, or ten years ago? Second, why do you always seem to be around, when there is an attack? And third, what can petrify a ghost?"

Harry sighed. "The Polyjuice is nearly done, then we can go ask Malfoy. I still don't believe it's him, but I simply don't know what else to do."

"I'll talk to Henry again.", Jane said with a sigh. They spent some time in silence, before she broke the silence once more. "I'm sorry for breaking into your room. I should've respected your privacy… But I was worried."

Harry smiled vaguely, and looked up to her. "Well, you should use your own advice." When she looked at him quizzically, he said: "No one is perfect. The worst thing is not to make a mistake, but not to learn from it." She smiled back.

***I've got the timeline from a website, apologies if it is incorrect.**

**I'm wondering, is the timeline still clear your you, as readers? Do you know what already happened, or should I put up a notice like "after the attack on Mrs Norris" and such?**

**This was a really long chapter. I thought after the long waiting you earned it. I'll try to get the next chapter up as soon as possible.**


	13. Chapter 13

**Here we are again, with the next chapter!**

Jane was not surprised when Harry told her that the potion was ready, on Christmas morning. She wasn't surprised when she saw it was perfect. She smiled and nodded at him, and he went to retrieve his friends. After breakfast in the castle, they came back to drink the potion. Harry and Ron had just used a Sleeping Draught on Crabbe and Goyle.

"Hermione, where does your hair come from?", Jane asked curiously.

"Well on the Dueling Club, I dueled Milicent Bulstrode, and she took me in a headlock.", Hermione said calmly.

"You have a Dueling Club? That is useful.", Jane said thoughtfully.

"It could be", Harry said dryly, "if it was not taught by that fool Lockheart." Jane let out a sigh of exasperation.

"That idiot is physically incapable of not doing something that puts the attention on him, is he not?", she said wryly.

"I don't know if he is brave, because he didn't run when Snape looked murderous; or just extremely stupid.", Ron interjected.

"Stupid", Jane and Harry said decidedly, before cracking up.

"But at least, Snape taught us the Disarming Charm, and we had great fun when he blasted Lockheart away with it. I think he was taking revenge for when Lockheart offered to brew the Restorative Draught.", Harry said.

"I would not drink anything that Lockheart provided me with.", Ron muttered.

They all shared a good laugh, before Jane left them to it, not willing to invade the students' privacy. She looked at some paperwork and set an alarm for an hour later. Jane sighed, and decided that today would be the day she informed Harry.

One hour later, she heard the noise of the trio returning. Not much later, Harry came into her office, a downtrodden look on his face.

"We learned exactly nothing, except the secret hiding place of Mr. Malfoy senior.", he said, clearly annoyed.

"Well… I realize that was not what you were hoping for, but it is something."

Harry nodded. "Yes, Ron is going to owl his father. Well, I'll leave you to it- "

Taking a deep breath, she said: "Wait."

Taking another deep breath, she continued.

"I'm going to accept the offered position. I'm going to be the next ambassador for France in the UK. I'll have a lot of training to do, and the person who kept the position until know, will help me until I'm seventeen."

Harry looked thoughtful. "Is this what you want?" When she nodded, he said: "Congrats, and good luck."

"Thank you.", Jane said, relieved that Harry took it so well.

"Now, in my current position, I was able to get this." She placed something that looked like a Knut on the table. Harry raised his eyebrows. "When you tap it and say 'emergency', it will bring you to my house in London. It's a Portkey, for emergencies only."

Harry smiled, and thanked her. He had bought her an extendable suitcase, with secret compartments and a featherlight charm. There was a knock on the door, and Ron came in.

"Hermione doesn't want to come out of her room.", he busted out.

"She didn't join us, either. Strange.", Harry said.

After a bit of pleading and talking, Hermione finally emerged.

"I think Millicent Bulstrode had a cat.", she said sadly.

Harry and Jane exchanged a look. "Come on, Hermione. We'll bring you to madame Pomfrey. She'll be able to fetch you up.", he said. Jane nods, and adds: "It will take some time to recover, but everything will be alright. I'll shield you from view." 

"Why is it you always find trouble?", Jane wondered aloud.

"I don't find trouble!", Harry said indignantly.

"Either way," she interrupted, "you found a diary, that starts writing back, showed you a memory, and you didn't think it could be dangerous?"

Harry looked sheepish. "It doesn't matter anyway, it's stolen. It must be a Gryffindor- "

"Didn't you just proof it's possible to break in some others House's dormitory?"

He looked even more sheepish now. In fact, he was looking so sheepish he could pass for a sheep.

"Do you believe it's Hagrid?"

Harry looked thoughtful, before he responded. "I was convinced, when I first saw the memory. But now… I don't know, it's just… I don't know Hagrid like that. I can see him letting a creature lose, seeing only the good in it, and then it harming someone. But I can't see Hagrid not confessing what happened then. I really just can't believe it."

Jane nodded. "Well, you know him better than I do. It's entirely possible that all the ministry had to see was his mother- "

Harry looked up to that. "I didn't know that you know her."

Jane eyed him. Apparently, he didn't know about Hagrid being a half-giant, and she thought it was not her place to tell him that. "Not in person. But I've heard of her. Let's just say that not all I heard was good."

They stayed silent for a while.

"I'll tell Henry about this diary. I don't know, something about it is… fishy."

Harry nodded.

"Did he have any luck about what could possibly petrify?"

Jane sighed. "We've both investigated it. A lot of books later, we simply cannot identify by just petrifying. There are quite a lot of options, and we can't really rule out one of them. No luck there."

Harry sighed. "Don't be angry right away, okay? Just hear me out."

"… Okay.", she said slowly.

"When you become ambassador, you will become publicly known. How will people not recognize you? Isn't that dangerous?"

"None of my parents were seen that much in public, so magical Britain as a whole probably won't recognize me. But yes, Death Eaters might, and those odds are, indeed, increasing. But I also have a personal guard, and for the most Death Eaters it's been since I was a year old, or even never. Only Voldemort's inner circle was allowed in."

"Can't you just avoid Death Eaters?", Harry asked worriedly.

"Well, those that are convicted – yes, not that anyone would believe them should they say something. But those that escaped, well… Some work for the ministry. They will get suspicious when I'm too clearly avoiding them. But they can't say anything to the minister either, that would expose them. They can come to attack me, but they are laying low. And I have protection."

Harry nodded, satisfied. He stood, and walked to the door until Jane's voice stopped him.

"Harry? You have a right to ask these questions, you know. You have a right to disagree. I won't be angry because you do; I've learned my lesson."

"That's good to know.", he said, smiling. Then he left.

The next evening, she was working quietly in her study when she heard a lot of racket downstairs. Rushing down the stairs, with her wand at ready, she was met by Ron, holding onto Harry. She ushered them to the couch.

"What happened?", she asked sharply.

"I don't know, he just is so distant this afternoon."

Taking a closer look, she saw that Harry's breathing was labored. She felt his forehead- cold and clam like she had feared. She cursed under her breath in French, and took a moment to calm herself.

"Harry?". She was proud to notice her voice didn't wobble. "Can you let go of Ron's hand for me?"

No reaction. She bit her lip, and tried again. "Harry? Can you blink if you hear me?" Nothing. She turned to Ron. "Did he see something shocking? Has anything happened?" Her heart sank when he nodded.

"It's Hermione… She's petrified. She went to the library just before the Quidditch match… And then McGonagall called it off."

Jane felt tears burning, but she fought them back. If Hermione was here, she would tell her to focus on the things she could solve right now. Harry needed her.

"Has he said something since?", she asked.

Ron thought for a moment. "Now you mention it, no."

"All right. Treaty!", she called.

"Yes madam?", the house-elf asked.

"Can you bring Henry here, and tell him to bring his supplies with him. Suspected case of shock."

The house-elf nodded, and disappeared. A few seconds later she was back, with Henry in tow.

"He's not responding, his forehead is cold and clam. He's had a shock tonight, and he's been unresponsive ever since."

Henry quickly repeated what she had just done, with the same response.

"I'm going to give him something calming now", while doing so, "and he's going to fall asleep. He'll probably sleep quite some time, but that's normal. He needs rest and time to recover. As soon as he's awake, he can go back if he feels like it, but be careful. Try not to scare him too much, certainly the first hours, okay?" They nodded. "Call me if you need me."

She called for Treaty again, and asked her to bring Harry to bed.

"I'm going back.", Ron announced.

Jane frowned. "Are you sure? You can stay here, if you want."

Ron shook his head. "No, I need to make sure no one suspects something. We left under the cloak, but still…"

Jane sighed. "All right, but be careful."

It wasn't much later when he returned. Jane looked up from where she had been sitting, within hearing distance of Harry's room. She noticed the look on his face – it was rather hard to miss – and asked: "What's wrong?"

Ron swallowed. "I went to confront Hagrid- "

"That really was not a good idea. If Hagrid had done those things, who knows how he will react?"

Ron nodded. "I know he didn't! … And besides, I needed to do something, after tonight…"

She sighed. While she thought it was not a good idea, she couldn't fault him for it, either. Not to mention, she thought, she was not his mother. It was not her place to correct him, or to lecture him.

"What did he have to say?"

"We didn't even get that far. Fudge and Dumbledore showed up. They sent him of too Azkaban as a precaution- "

"A _precaution_?!", she said softly. It took a lot not to scream, or to go tear Fudge's head of. "How in the world- in what dimension, in which idiotic head is _that_ a bleeding precaution?!"

Ron sighed. "That's not all."

"What in the world can they still do? You're not going to tell me that they brought Dementors on the school's ground, did they?"

"No, Fudge is dumb, but not that dumb. The board of governors fired Dumbledore."

She stared at him in shock. She sincerely hoped she had misunderstood him, but the expression on his face told her differently.

"This is a mess." She closed her eyes, and sighed. She didn't honestly know what to do, unless-

"Can you stay here for a moment?", she asked.

Ron looked sheepish. "I actually wondered whether your offer still stands...?"

She smiled, and nodded. "Yes, you can stay here. I've got a matrass in that closet. Make yourself at home - I've got to run an errand."

She got up, and took the floo to her house, then to her office in the embassy. She called Patrick, who held the position before her. She slumped down in her chair, sighing deeply.

"Well, that sound ominous.", he said, coming in.

She looked up. "I need your help." Jane explained the situation with Hagrid, leaving out the part about Harry's shock.

Patrick sighed. "While your intentions are noble, if you don't want to reveal your connection with Harry, you can't do anything yet. And even then- You can officially inform the government that you cannot condone their actions, but they'll keep on blabbing about having to do something. That's what this is about, the government saving their faces. And while their ways are wrong, there's only so much you can do through diplomacy."

Jane sighed. "Can't we reach out to our allies? If we all officially distance ourselves, won't that cause Fudge trouble?"

Patrick looked thoughtful. "Yes, but I don't think it will change his mind. In the long term, it'll hurt his reputation. But the situation can't go on like that for long. If this is not solved before the end of this school year, Hogwarts will be closed. It'll be the only choice left, both for the teachers, the government, and the board of governors."

"Let's get out an official communication, then", Jane sighed.

It was 6 o'clock in the morning when she finally returned. There she found Ron snoring in Harry's room, while Harry was in the small library.

"You look tired", he remarked when she entered. "Ron told me what happened with Hagrid and Dumbledore. Is there anything you can do?"

"We are getting word out that we are severely displeased with his actions, but there's not much more we can do. It won't stop Fudge. He has to save his face now; he is not worried about the long time run – and that is where diplomacy works best."

"You tried the best you can, Jane. No one can ask more from you."

She nodded, not convinced. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine – really. We're going back now."

"Be careful. Don't go digging on your own. Don't go around on your own, either."

"Safety in numbers, got it. Keep trying what you can, Jane."

And so, he and Ron left Jane and went back to Hogwarts.

**This is a lot later then I hoped it would be, but it's here. See you next chapter!**


	14. Chapter 14: a really long one!

… **And, I'm back! Time to wrap up second year (I never liked it…)**

Jane was working late, when an alarm sounded. She was so tired – having worked late ever since Hermione got petrified – that it took her quite an amount of time to realise what it was: Harry's emergency Portkey had been activated. Flooing to her house in London in a rush, she was confronted with a pale looking Harry and an even paler, ill looking Ron.

"What happened?", she asked, casually vanishing the vomit. Harry quickly shook his head, tilting it slightly to Ron. Jane sighed inwardly. She went to make some tea – trust the English to get over a shock with _tea_, she thought – and came back just in time to see that Ron was vomiting a second time. Vanishing that, too, she offered him a cup of tea.

After a while, she asked again: "What happened?"

Harry sighed. "Hagrid said, before he was arrested, that 'anyone who wants to know something, should just follow the spiders. So… During Herbology, we noticed that the spiders were running to the Forbidden Forest." A memory flashed through her, but it vanished before she could grasp it entirely. Jane motioned for Harry to continue. "Well, we went to the Forbidden Forest. We followed the spiders until we found…"

"Acromantula's!", Ron shouted, startling Jane. "Acromantula's. Can you imagine?! They literally eat human flesh!"

"Anyway", Harry said calmly – way to calm, she thought – "the eldest, Aragog, told us Hagrid raised him. He was there, when the chamber was opened last time."

"It's been opened before?!", Jane said, shocked.

"Yes…", Harry said, getting a faraway look in his eyes.

"Harry?", she asked, concerned. Not another panic attack, she thought, groaning mentally.

"Aragog said a girl died last time.", Harry said thoughtfully. "What if she is still there?"

She had no idea who he meant, since Jane had never been in the castle, but Ron caught on quickly enough. "You mean, Moaning Mytrle?"

Harry nodded. "Who else? How many ghosts are haunting a bathroom, at Hogwarts?"

A rhetorical question, of course – or at least, Jane hoped it was. One death was bad enough…

And then it struck her. Wide eyed, she quickly went to retrieve the notes Henry, Lara and she had made when investigating the monster. Scanning through them, she stared at the paper in shock. But it couldn't be… Another thought struck her.

"Why was Hermione not with you?"

"She went to the library", Ron answered, confused at her behaviour.

"She's smart, she probably found out what it was. I'll bet anything she tore the page from the book, because she knew she was in danger. All of you outside, except for a few… The perfect opportunity for the one handling the monster. After all, she could just mend the book later on…"

"Have you found out what it was?", Harry asked eyeing her suspiciously. It was the only reason he could think of, for her to behave like that.

"Maybe. Some clues fit, others don't."

"Tell us your theory, together we can might make something out of it.", Harry said reasonably.

"A basilisk.", she admitted. Ron gasped.

"Okay, what clues fit in?", Harry asked, determined.

"You are the only one to hear that voice- you are the only Parseltongue… Well, except for the person handling it, 'cos that person will have to steer it on somehow, and I doubt it can read English. The spiders fleeing from the basilisk."

"That's not much in favour for the basilisk", Ron said, slightly relieved. She couldn't help but silently agree, on both points.

"What's not fitting in?", Harry asked.

"Petrification. The basilisk kills people with one look."

"No one has seen it directly…", he said, trailing off. Jane motioned for him to continue. "Well, Nearly-Headless Nick did, but he was dead already. Justin Finch-Fletchley saw him through Nick… Hermione had a mirror with her, as did the prefect found with her. I'll bet you anything, if she thought it was the basilisk, she warned that another girl… Colin saw him through his camera, which melted. I can just picture him getting his camera ready if he heard something suspicious, he wouldn't run… Mrs Norris… must have seen it in the water. Myrtle let the bathroom flood…"

"Well, if it's a basilisk, all we have to do is get a rooster.", she said with some fake cheer.

Harry stiffened. "Hagrid roosters where all killed."

There was a pregnant pause. "Well, I think this is now quite a lot to be a coincidence. You need to alert someone- "

"With what evidence?", Harry asked forcefully. "There is none. Only a bunch of things that could fit in. They found their culprit years ago – Hagrid. The ministry won't change its mind so easily."

"But the professors- ", Ron started.

"Another point, how do we explain what we found out? We can tell about Aragog, all right. But how did we get out? We can't let them find out about you, Jane!", Harry protested vehemently.

"Yes you can. Whatever the risks are, if it means safety for so many, I'm willing to take them."

"Give us time.", Harry pleaded. "We can go visit Hermione; she'll hold that paper. We'll find it, tell the teachers about it. Everybody will be safe. Attacks don't follow each other so quickly." Jane was in doubt. Harry sensed it, and quickly pushed on. "Besides, there's limited people the attack can be on." Jane frowned, confused. Ron looked puzzled, too. "Haven't you noticed? The first attack was probably some kind of test. But then…", he started counting down on his fingers. "Colin, a kid that has been annoying me. Justin Finch-Fletchley, who I 'attacked' at the Duelling Club. Both making me suspicious. But then… it seems like a change of heart. Hermione… Not an attempt to make me suspicious, not when the others were so well chosen. Maybe she just knew too much. Or maybe the perpetrator has a new target – me. First targeting my friends, though, then me…"

Jane thought he was a bit to calm about that. But she couldn't deny the reason within his words.

"Fine.", she said, after some time. "You try to get to Hermione. But remember: _safety in numbers_. If you see something move when no others are around, close your eyes, scream at the top of your lungs and here's another emergency Portkey."

Both Harry and Ron got up to leave. Before they went out, Jane called after them. "And remember, be careful and alert me when something is wrong – or better yet, alert a professor."

They both nodded, and after they left, Jane prayed silently she made the right call. 

Harry's POV

Ron and he had agreed they had to visit Myrtle, too. The more evidence they got, the better it was. But right now, evidence was the last thing on their minds. They had encountered McGonagall on their way to Myrtle, after escaping Lockheart. They went to Hermione, where they'd not only found out that it was indeed a basilisk, but also how it was roaming the castle, and where the entrance to the Chamber was. But then, when they went to tell the teachers, they'd heard Ginny had been abducted. Harry had alerted Jane immediately by owl, but since she was in London, he didn't know how soon she would get his note, nor what she would do. Luckily, the flying conditions where excellent: no wind at all. They did, however, agree to do something, as in telling Lockheart. After all, Harry thought, he was the DADA teacher. If they flat out told him where to go, he couldn't turn them down – would be bad for his good name. They knocked.

"Professor, we have information about the Chamber you should know.", Harry started. Lockheart let them in. The first thing Harry noticed was that there where trunks everywhere, in various states – some more filled then others. Lockheart was leaving.

"I don't think you will need your trunks in the Chamber, professor.", Harry said, carefully keeping the anger out his voice. Lockheart looked like a deer caught in the headlights, he thought disgusted.

"Ah yes… There's… urgent business that requires my attention! Yes, that's it…", Lockheart said.

Ron looked like he wanted to interrupt, but Harry quickly stepped on his foot.

"Is that so, professor? Because, I don't think so. Imagine the headlines of the newspapers, should I tell them you refused to come to the aid of a little eleven-year-old girl…", Harry said menacingly, keeping his tone low and dangerous. "Such a _decorated_ person, after all you have _done_." He tutted, stepping closer to Lockheart. "Because, you _did_ all those things, didn't you?", he said, his tone now accusingly, already knowing the answer.

"It was hard work- ", Lockheart tried to defend himself.

That was the wrong thing to say. "Was it, now? Imagine, then, doing all those things yourself. Never getting the credit for it", his tone was now so cold, it scared even him. But he pushed through. Harry needed a confession. "What did you do, pay them off? Killed them, vanishing their body? No, you are too untalented to vanish anything. Did you frame someone for the murders you committed?" He paused briefly for the effect. It was a good thing he'd gone to that unit, helping the police. He'd learned a lot about interrogation techniques. Vaguely, he noted that Ron was staring at both of them with shock. "What did you do, Lockheart!", he raised his voice now, standing right before Lockheart.

"I obliviated them.", Lockheart admitted with a small voice. He went back to his trunks. Harry stared at the slightly moving shadows, in shock. He'd never expected _this_. He thought Lockheart had simply payed them, but no…

From the corner of his eyes, he saw Lockheart grabbing his wand, pointing it at them.

"Obl-", Lockheart started.

"Expelliarmus!", Harry shouted. Grimly, he noted that it was the second time he owned his life to Severus Snape. "That's what comes from it when you teach a Dueling Club with someone who has a hundred times the brains you have, Gilderoy.", he said, speaking softly and coldly again.

"But-"

"No buts! Up, now.", he said in a low, threatening tone. Lockheart obeyed, while Ron threw Lockheart's wand out of the window. "Move.", he said curtly, pointing his wand to the door.

"But- ", Lockheart tried again.

"One more word, professor, and I'll hex you into oblivion, understood?", he said sharply. Lockheart nodded fervently. "Ron, we're going to move in a triangle to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. Keep him on the head, you and me on the other points. Make sure you can hex him anytime. You shoot first, then ask questions. We'll use the full-body bind. Okay?" Ron nodded.

When they entered the bathroom, Moaning Myrtle appeared. Harry had thought about the best way to approach this, and had decided she liked attention. That, and the lack of time, had made him choose for the direct option.

"We've come to ask you how you died, Myrtle.", he said calmly. As she did her story, he kept a wary eye on Lockheart. It was not much she had to tell, and he found the entrance quickly. After an 'open' in Parseltongue, a pipeline appeared. He looked at thoughtfully, and then made his decision.

"All right, I'm going down there.", he said calmer then he actually felt.

"I'll come, too.", Ron said. Harry just nodded. He had expected nothing else.

"But first things first. Now we have such an honoured and brave member of society here," he heard Ron snort violently, "we would, of course, be more then glad if you joined us, Gilderoy.", he said, smiling – but his smile didn't reach his eyes, which remained cold.

"Oh… No, no I really, really need to go no, awfully sorry boys…", the idiot started to say.

"It was not an option, Gilderoy. You can go down on each one of those two ways: one, you go willingly; or two, I put you in the full-body bind and push you through, where I use you as a bait." He wouldn't actually do the latter, though. But apparently he was convincing, because Lockheart lowered himself in the pipe.

"Boys…", he started to say, but the looks of both boys stopped him. He disappeared out of sight. Harry waited impatiently until he didn't hear anything from the pipeline, watching the moving shadows. Ron was growing impatient, he noticed.

"We need to wait until he's down entirely, I don't want something like the Devil's Snare last year happening again. Come straight behind me, after you've counted until then. Aim your wand at Lockheart as soon as you stand stable, and step to the left of the pipeline, I'll be standing to the right. When you see something move, close your eyes, okay?" Ron nodded, and Harry lowered himself in the pipeline. When he came down, he looked around a bit, trying to get a sense of the surroundings while keeping an eye on Lockheart. He thought about getting out… he would need the emergency Portkey Jane had given him, as he had not thought about another way of getting out. How he would cover that up, he had no idea of – but there were more urgent matters, right now. They walked on a little. The room echoed quite a lot, apparently the one who built it didn't want surprise visitors. Then he saw something in the light of the wand he had lit. After all, with this many echoes, they would be heard coming before someone even saw the light, so walking around in the dark held no advantage.

"Is that- ", Ron started to say.

"No.", Harry said, more convinced then he actually was. And he was right. It was an immense long piece of skin snake. For the first time since they were down here, he realised the odds where heavily against the three of them. There was a sound behind them, and he saw Lockheart falling on his knees. Ron pointed his wand to Lockheart, but Harry saw he made a mistake. It was as if he saw everything in slow-motion: Lockheart throwing himself on Ron, winning the wand and distancing himself from him immediately. That, Harry noted, was something he did right. Probably lots of practice with people resisting him Memory charm. He thought quickly. He couldn't do a shield charm, and if he did nothing, Ron would be obliviated in a moment…

"Awfully sorry boys… I'll take a piece of this skin, say you were attacked by the monster, but I managed to rescue you with my freshly finished antidote… Only, being in the chamber itself, the power of the beast increased and you sadly lost your memories… Partially due to the shock of seeing the girl lying dead, off course…". It sounded like he was trying to convince himself. Lockheart raised his wand.

Ever since the time in fist year, when he had raised a shield against Quirrel, Harry had been trying to do it again. Jane had had little trouble with it, but it was considered wandless magic, and as such difficult for most wizards. But now, Harry realised what he had done wrong: the first time, he had thought about trying to protect everyone he loved. And now, as he thought about protecting Ron, he felt it again. He raised his shield, and the spell rocketed off. Just as he thought he was saved; Harry saw that there was a fissure in the ceiling. And, he thought grimly, that was – of course – the exact place where the spell landed. A loud rumbling sounded, and then the ceiling started to come down. Harry broke off into a run, stumbling and gliding, deeper into the cave. It seemed ages before the rumbling finally subsided, and he looked around, coughing on the dust.

"Ron?", he called when he couldn't see his friend. "Ron, are you okay?", slightly panicky now.

"Yes, I'm good. Lockheart isn't, though. Got a stone on his head, he's out cold and bleeding quite a lot."

Harry thought about what he could do for a moment. They were far under the school, and he didn't feel like blasting away the entire part that caved in – because, he had already noticed there was no gap anything bigger than a firefly could go through. He was locked on the other side. He felt panic bubbling, but pushed it down. First things first – the injured, he thought.

"Ron, tear a piece of your shirt. Fold it and put it on the wound. Put pressure on it. That should stop the bleeding." Okay, that was the obvious advice… What else now? "When he wakes, try asking him simple things; like his name, the year and date, his profession… No matter how wrong he is, you simply smile and nod, okay? And if he tries to hex you another time, just… do what you have to do to protect yourself, okay?"

"All right. What are you going to do, try to lift these things a way to get through?", Ron sounded like he didn't believe that was what Harry was going to do.

Harry took a deep breath. "I'm going to get Ginny. If I don't return… I want you to know that you and Hermione where the best friends I could imagine, Ron."

There was a pregnant pause, then- "You are my best friend, too, Harry so please, return safely, okay?"

Harry smiled lightly. Ron couldn't see it of course, but he hoped it would make him sound a little bit more cheerful. "See you."

He took another deep breath and turned away. After having walked out of Ron's hearing, he stopped.

"Are you going to come out?", he asked the thin air. The shadows shifted, and suddenly he saw Jane standing there.

"How did you know I was there?"

"The shadows shifted, but there's no wind. And then I noticed it happened when a piece of shocking information was revealed, and figured it was you but you shielded yourself from view."

"Your owl was smart, she brought your note to my house-elf, who was working in our house in Hogsmeade. Treaty immediately brought it to me and I flooed to Hogsmeade immediately, and ran all the way to the castle. And then I ran into you when you went to tell that…", her lips thinned in a way that reminded him forcefully of professor McGonagall. He sighed, he wished he hadn't alerted Lockheart but her. But also, at the same time, he was glad he did alert Lockheart: now his lies would be exposed. That brought him to another thought.

"I'm surprised you didn't hex him when he tried to hex us.", he said, walking further.

"Oh, I wanted to; but you were faster, even though I had my wand out." They walked on a bit. "Do we have a plan?", she wondered aloud. "And don't bother saying I don't have to come with you; I already made my choice."

He sighed. "You'll hide yourself; I'll go in and talk to whoever is controlling the basilisk. While we talk, you come closer to both of us and we take the Portkey back. Then we come back down here with another Portkey for Ron and Lockheart. I doubt Ron will mind waiting a bit longer if it means his sister is safe and being cared for. Meanwhile, we sent word to their parents."

Jane nodded. "And what if they hex you straight away?", she asked.

"Well, then that person will think he or she has nothing to fear, so plenty of time for you." She didn't look happy with that answer.

"You brought a rooster with you?", he asked. The look on her face was enough answer. "Well… That's a problem, because I didn't either. That makes the plan simpler; we just try to get Ginny out, if we have the chance, we arrest the one who did this, but it's not our priority. And we evade the basilisk as much as possible." Jane didn't look happy with this, but she reluctantly agreed. And then, they found themselves before the real entrance of the Chamber of Secrets.

As they walked forward carefully, Harry signed subtly to Jane. In the far end of the Chamber, at the feet of a giant statue, lied a small figure with red hair; behind it, in the shadows, stood a man. He broke into a run, and fell onto his knees. Harry checked for a pulse, and breathed a sigh of relief when he found one; although it was weaker than he would've liked. "Come on, Ginny.", he muttered. Jane would understand it meant Ginny was alive, and it would cover for any noise she might make. "Come on, wake up. Let's get out of here. Ginny?", he pleaded softly.

"She won't wake.", a soft voice behind him said.

He turned around, pretending to be shocked when he noticed a man standing behind him. And didn't have to feign surprise when he recognised him. "Tom? Tom Riddle? What do you mean?"

Subtly, slowly, he made an emergency gesture to Jane. He didn't know how this was possible, but Riddle didn't look any older. Now he knew where to look for, he could see where she was – right behind him, which made his life easier. He felt her move more then he saw it.

"Yes, Harry Potter. I mean what I said."

There was a sudden red gleam in Riddle's eyes. Alarm bells where ringing in his head. Then he saw, with a feeling of dread, that Riddle held his wand. And decided to play the only card he had – play dumb.

"Thank you.", he said, reaching for his wand. He knew Riddle wouldn't give it, but it was all an act.

Riddle laughed softly, a cold a high laugh. Both he and Jane stiffened – they recognised it immediately. How could they not? It was the laugh of the man who had ruined their lives, who had murdered their parents in front of them, who Harry had faced once more last year. But _how?_

"I'll watch this for you."

"Listen up, you don't seem to grasp the situation. We're in the Chamber of Secrets. The basilisk can come out – "

"It obeys only.", Riddle replied with a hint of amusement.

Harry stared. He couldn't think of anything to say.

"But I wanted to speak to you… That's why I invited you down here…"

"Invited me?", Harry repeated slowly. This was not going well. They couldn't move Ginny without Riddle noticing it – and, he saw now, Ginny was losing colour just as fast as Riddle looked clearer.

"Yes, yes…Boy, of course. You really are slow in the uptake, are you not? Haven't I told you that, for the last months, I've a new target?" Harry stared. Riddle hadn't told him, but he'd figured it out. He just didn't like to have his suspicions confirmed. "You."

And there it was. Confirmation. This was all his fault, Hermione had been petrified because of him, Ginny had been taken down here because of him, and he dared to bet all his gold that the reason Riddle opened the Chamber had something to do with him, too.

"But why?", he asked.

"Because I need to talk with you."

"About?", Harry wondered aloud, now really confused.

"You. How did you survive the attack of the greatest wizard of all time?"

Harry looked at Riddle. Why would he care about Voldemort? "What is it to you?"

"Lord Voldemort is the name I used to call myself when I was among friends at Hogwarts." If he hadn't been so shocked, he would've laughed aloud. _Friends._ But Riddle continued. He wrote his full name in the air, which could indeed be transformed in I am lord Voldemort.

"So, you opened the Chamber.", Harry concluded slowly.

Voldemort laughed again. "Me? O, no. Little miss Weasley here did that."

"But not of her own free will, is it not?", Harry asked.

"Little stupid miss Weasley told her diary everything… And by doing that, she gave me access to her soul. And that was all I needed, her soul. While she told me more and more, I grew stronger and stronger. I managed to take over control every now and then. It took her way to long to distrust her diary. And then you found me. I was fascinated. But silly miss Weasley panicked", a feeling Harry could imagine, "and stole the diary. Can you imagine how disappointed I was? And now, no more questions. Talk, boy."

But Harry had a plan – and it did not involve talking. They needed to defeat Riddle. As long as he was alive, he would be using Ginny's soul, and she would continue to suffer. And it needed to be done rather sooner than later.

"Nobody knows. My mother saved me. My mother, daughter of filthy muggles, like you would say. But I hate to break it to you, you are not the greatest wizard. That is Albus Dumbledore. Even at your best, you never dared to take your chances against him. You're _weak_. Besides, I've seen you last year. You're fool, you're disgusting. Your hunger to power has given you nothing in return. You're not even human anymore!"

Then music sounded. It had something utterly harmonic, and Harry felt better immediately. There was a burst of flames and out of that came-

"Fawkes?", he asked incredulously. The bird made thrilling noise. It had the Sorting had clutched in its claws; witch Fawkes dropped at his feet now.

Riddle's face twitched. Then he smiled, and Harry felt all his muscles tense. "So, your mother gave her life for you… So, there's nothing special to you. I wondered. I thought about just killing you, but it will be far more satisfying to play around a little bit with you. Since Dumbledore sent you his bird, you can have it… And I shall invite my pet."

And then, he spoke in Parseltongue. He realised that Riddle was calling the basilisk.

Jane's POV

Jane had stayed right behind Harry at all times. She'd seen Harry's signal, warning her. The more she listened to this conversation, the more unreal it felt. This _boy_ would grow up to be the murderer of countless people, the torturer of just as much people… Not all in person, but was just giving an order so much better? She was staring at the person responsible for orphaning so many children, murdering and dividing entire families. She was so lost in her thoughts that she nearly misted it when Riddle called the basilisk. But Harry didn't – he sprang into action, dragging Ginny after a pillar, signalling for Jane to stay with her. She disliked the idea of Harry facing a basilisk on his own without a wand, not that it would've been a lot of help. Just like a dragon's skin, a basilisk scales where impenetrable for most curses and hexes. But what to do now? She glanced from behind the pillar to where Harry was standing. It was a good thing she had been arching – that was actually something she would begin to teach Harry this summer, it was meant as a surprise. But right now, she knew, they would be lucky if they made it that far. She sent a flight of arrows at the basilisk and cursed under her breath when they did not penetrate the skin. Just can't win, she thought, hiding behind the pillar once more.

Harry was running along the wall, she heard, trying to distract the basilisk. Riddle was spinning around like mad, shouting around to show yourself – Jane snorted, she wouldn't do that because he demanded it - trying to find out where the arrows came from. Jane flinched as she heard Harry trip over the uneven surface. Deciding to take a quick look, from behind the pillar she saw he had caught something in his fall, and Jane squinted her eyes to see what it was. It seemed like a – hat? Harry put it on his head, and Jane frowned. What in the world did he expect to happen? He took it off, and her eyes doubled in size as she saw him reaching inside and drawing out – a sword.

Meanwhile, Fawkes was attacking the basilisk, but it seemed like he had a more specific way of targeting the basilisk. It took her a few moments to realise that the bird was attacking the basilisk's eyes. She pulled back, hiding behind the pillar, counting her arrows. One left. Off course, she had been training when she had heard from her elf what happened, and she had been so distracted she had not thought about retrieving her arrows. She closed her eyes. She heard the basilisk trashing – maybe Fawkes had hit his target – and knew she had one chance. One arrow, make it count; she thought. Turning around the pillar, she drew her arrow back, closed her eyes and made herself visible. The basilisk saw her, started to turn its head. She aimed carefully, and shot; making herself invisible again. Dropping her bow next to Ginny, she practically saw Riddle concluding it must have been her. And then, she heard the basilisk trashing again. The arrow had hit its target right in the middle, and Jane came out of cover. Riddle was hissing again, Harry made himself ready and attacked. He missed, and luckily so did the basilisk. Jane watched, terrified, as his next attack went straight through its brain, and the basilisk started trashing again. But even from this distance, she could send the sudden flash of terror Harry felt, and then – pain, burning in her veins. She was running before she had processed what must have happened. Coming closer, she saw her worst fears confirmed – a fang sticking out of Harry's arm. Harry clutched it, and stared to where he knew she was standing. Then, his knees buckled; she was only just in time to catch him, and lowered him gently to the ground.

_Harry_, she thought to him. No no no no no it couldn't be true. She reached for his hand, let her healing gift go around – and she knew it was too late. There was nothing she could do. Tears where streaming down her face, as she held him close.

_That feels good. I'm… Glad you're here, no matter how selfish that may sound._

_I'll stay here. Hang on in there, Harry!_

_It's too late and we both know it._

"And so, it ends… The boy-who-lived died alone, after taking on a too strong enemy.

Jane strongly considered a silencing charm. Unfortunately, she couldn't perform one.

_Jane._ She looked back at Harry, infinite pain in her eyes. She should've done more… _Jane. I need you… to bring Ginny back, okay? Safe her. Leave me. And…_ Harry trailed of. Jane felt his pain, and tried to lift it. _Thank you – you need to be there for Ron and 'Mione. They'll need… _Harry trailed of again.

"You see, even a bird is crying for you know, Potter!", Riddle taunted.

Jane ignored him again. _What, Harry?_

_You._ His breath was growing more laboured, and she watched the phoenix shedding its tears on the wound. There was something with that… And suddenly, Harry's presence was getting stronger.

_Go to Ginny. Be ready for a Portkey._

_Harry? _His tone had changed, he sounded more urgent now. His eyes drilled into hers, and suddenly she understood – Phoenix tears had healing powers!

Breaking of into a run, she heard Riddle, firing a spell at the Phoenix.

"So, it ends like this…"

She had reached the pillar and grabbed Ginny's hand. She tried to lift her, but noticed she couldn't cross the Chamber with a girl on her back – Riddle was now firing hexes and curses at another pillar, where Harry hid.

_Jane, I need you to do this_, and he quickly showed her an idea. Jane stood, stiff. She had no idea why he would want to do that, but she did it anyway.

She watched as if in slow motion how Harry came from behind his pillar, and threw his basilisk fang.

"Miss! You foolish boy, you really thought you could best me?"

"Oh, I don't know", Harry replied evenly. "Before you gloat, you might want to look at your precious diary." And as Riddle whirled around, he saw the diary lying there – with deep embedded in it, a basilisk fang. For Jane had picked it up on her way back from Harry, and he had asked her to throw it in such a way, he could pretend to aim at Riddle. And his plan worked – Riddle screamed for what seemed an eternity, and disappeared.

**I'm going to call this really long chapter to an end here. I still owe you part of second year, but university started again, and I've been and will be quite busy. I can't tell you when next update will be, because I find I put too much pressure on myself to stick to that deadline. I'll try to go as fast as I can, and hope for your understanding.**


	15. Chapter 15

**I'm really late with this, I l know… I have no other excuse then a lot of work, and hope that things are going to improve. So, here is the remainder of second year; and perhaps even the beginning of third year. Not much has changed from Canon yet, but that will come when it'll come. For now, enjoy!**

Silence rung in their ears after Riddle disappeared. Harry breathed a sigh of relief, releasing the tension in his shoulder. It had been quite the year, and this conclusion had been quite… unnerving. He picked up his wand from where Riddle had stood, and noticed that Jane was already looking over Ginny. He quickly joined them.

"I'd expect she would wake as soon as he had disappeared, but she didn't.", Jane hastily explained, kneeling beside the still unconscious eleven-years-old. Harry knelt beside them. "Her pulse is weak but steady; her breathing too low to my liking. All in all-", she interrupted herself, looking alarmed at Ginny. He saw her stiffen, and felt for a pulse himself – nothing. Jane looked dazed for a moment, but training kicked in and she sprang into action.

"Go get my bag! It's after the second pillar on the left. Now!", she said forcefully, starting CPR. Harry got back onto his feet and quickly collected the bag.

"Give her the injection.", she continued, not looking over. Harry did as she said.

"Okay, watch what I do because you are going to take over. You put your hands together, put them on the chest and press for five centimetres, okay?" Harry nodded. "Taking over in three, two, one, now!", she stopped and stepped back. Harry quickly took over. "Push harder. You need to compress the hart.", she said tonelessly.

"I can't, her ribs-"

"Right now, that doesn't matter. Break them if you must. Push five centimetres." Harry pushed harder, and flinched when he felt ribs break. He continued nonetheless, and watched as Jane gave more injections and some potions. She might never have done it before, except on some kind of doll, but she did it nonetheless. He watched her as she searched through her bag. "Count every time you push, okay? You need to get 60 beats per minute. That's quite fast."

"Harry, how long until the Hospital wing?", she asked quietly.

"At the very best twenty minutes.", he responded, feeling panic bubbling again.

She nodded. "We don't have time…", she said, frowning to herself.

"And St.-Mungo's?", Harry asked.

She shook her head. "By the time we arrive at my place, floo there, explain the situation… They'll just declare her death."

"Isn't she?"

"There's still hope. But not much.", she responded sincerely. "Let me think."

She stayed silent for a while. "My healing powers – maybe I can get her stable enough for travelling. It's the only thing I can think of."

Harry nodded. She placed her hands on Ginny's head. She followed energy levels, smiling to herself. When she hid herself, she placed something between her energy and theirs. Healing was like reshaping deformed energy, and she could see Ginny's was heavily malformed. She closed her eyes and started working, closing everything else off.

Harry watched Jane, having her eyes closed. He took in a sharp breath when a minute or two later, he felt Ginny's heart come back to life, and leaned back. Jane was still pouring energy out to her. He watched her work, looking from Ginny to her, dimly relieved. He felt guilty because he was not more relieved, because he did care, but it was just too much today.

At first, he didn't notice. But then, he saw blood near his right knee. He frowned – he hadn't seen an injury on Ginny, and his injury had been healed. The basilisk blood probably had dried up entirely. That left-

Looking up, he saw that Jane was having a nosebleed. What a strange coincidence, he thought grimly. "Jane?", he tried. No response.

Five minutes later, blood came out of Jane's eyes. "Jane, you need to stop. You are going too far!" Still no response, and Harry cursed under his breath. Taking her arm and shaking it hard, he yelled: "Jane! Stop!". She opened her eyes, and slowly lifted her head. Her eyes were uncomprehending. At that moment, Ginny stirred. They both looked at her in surprise, then Jane fainted dead.

"Jane!", he exclaimed, leaning over to check on her. Now it was her pulse that was weak – but at least stronger then Ginny's had been. Cursing under his breath, he mumbled: "I'm sorry.", before activating her emergency Portkey. She would be so angry for this later... He and Ginny where alone now, in the Chamber. He sighed, leaning to a pillar, feeling completely devoid of energy.

Then, Ginny's eyelashes flustered and she opened her eyes. "Harry?", she asked softly.

"Yes, I'm here. Riddle is dead. It's okay, we're safe now.", he said, giving her a hug and rocking her– a bit awkwardly – back and forth. He felt like crying, but just couldn't. After a while, she calmed down. Harry quickly retrieved the sword and the Sorting hat, and they went on their way back. He stayed a bit behind, looking to the place where he'd seen Jane for the last time.

"I hope you're all right", he mumbled to the now empty room.

They walked on and on, while Harry was thinking about how to get up the pipe again. They could, of course, levitate someone… And that someone would better be him, because Ginny was too distraught to explain anything, and he didn't want to separate her from Ron. Lockheart had probably no memory of anything, and he didn't trust the bumbling fool anyway. He didn't look forward to all the explaining that was bound to come. And who to ask to levitate him, that was another though question… Luckily, it proved unnecessary. Fawkes carried them all up, and based on the way he flew to McGonagall's office, Harry thought he knew who was in there. Lovely, he thought dimly. He gestured for Ron to knock, and they went in.

"Ginny?!", Mrs Weasley asked incredulously, hugging her daughter. Mister Weasley followed suit, while McGonagall had gone starry-eyed and Dumbledore was smiling near the fire, with Fawkes on his shoulder. Before he could say anything else, Mrs. Weasley launched herself on them, thanking them. Harry nearly fell because of her enthusiasm, though he certainly could sympathise. Professor McGonagall seemed to have regained her composure. "What happened?", she said. Then, blinking, she said, sounding alarmed: "Mister Potter, are you injured?!"

"No, this is not my blood, it's the basilisk", Harry quickly and quietly reassured her. But not quite enough, it seemed. "Basilisk?", mister Weasley asked faintly.

"Ah, yes there used to be one in the Chamber.", Harry said vaguely. "Look, I really think madame Pomfrey should take a look at Ginny. It's been horrible for her. I promise I'll explain later on.", Harry said decidedly.

Both Weasley parents nodded, and took their daughter to the infirmary. Harry went on to explain what had happened. 

It seemed to have taken hours, but finally Harry had finished. Despite braking so many rules, neither he nor Ron where expelled. There was a feast, Lockheart went to St.-Mungo's and the victims would be revived. After a talk with Dumbledore – it had taken all of Harry's concentration to pretend he was still interested in this – and then a final confrontation with Malfoy, he went on to the feast, meeting Ron on the way.

"How is Ginny?", he asked when he saw his friend.

"Calmed down a bit, glad she isn't expelled, of course. Mum and dad wanted to take her home, but she wanted to wait until the term has finished.", Ron answered. He still looked concerned, and after looking around, he pulled Harry aside in a corner. "You know, madame Pomfrey said she was surprised."

"Oh?", Harry asked with a sense of foreboding.

"With being possessed so long, she had expected that Ginny had weakened considerably. But she was just fine. In fact, she said she had never seen such a healthy patient.", Ron said.

"Well, that's good news.", Harry said, trying to sound pleased. The alarm bells in his head where ringing again.

Ron looked at him for a while. "I don't know how it happened, I don't know how she did it. But thank her for me." Seeing Harry's look of surprise, he added: "It's obvious, isn't it? You don't know enough healing for this, so it must be her. We both know who I mean. Trust me, her secret is safe with me, but _she needs to be more careful_. If my parents where less distraught, if madame Pomfrey had been less distraught, there would've been a lot of questions. Not that I'm not glad she did it, but she needs to lay low for a while. My parents will connect the dots and so will madame Pomfrey if this happens too often." Harry nodded, then made a split decision.

"I need you to tell the rest that I've gone to see Ginny, okay? I need to do something." Ron looked at him for a while.

"Then why are you still standing here? Move it. You can't stay away to long, Harry."

Harry nodded, and broke off into a run.

He was still out of breath when he reached her house in Hogsmeade. Walking quickly to the fire and flooing to Jane's house in London, where he moved to the Hospital Wing in the basement. He broke off into a run again, running towards Henry's office – she had to be alive, after all she has been through she must be alive, this could not be the end… Then, he spotted Henry, who clearly heard him coming. To Harry's relief, he was smiling brightly.

"How is she?", he asked quickly.

"She just woke up, she's just exhausted; by the time she got here it was nothing a good night's rest won't cure.", Henry replied reassuringly.

"That's good", Harry said, breathing a sigh of relief. "Hang on, what do you mean with 'by the time she got here'? I brought her as fast as I could –"

"And yet, something strange showed up on the readings."

"Being?", Harry asked anxiously.

"She had magical exhaustion a couple of weeks ago."

Harry stayed silent. How could he have missed _that_? He knew all to well how that felt…

"But it didn't happen then, did it? I think she cured herself."

"Is that even possible?", Harry asked surprised.

"Who is to say? There are no cases prior with her history. No infant has been placed under the Cruciatus for so long…"

"And the effect of that on adults?", Harry pressed on. He knew Henry would have thought of that, but he needed to understand.

"Not comparable.", Henry answered, some grim undertone in his voice. Harry decided against asking. "She wants to see you; she was worried about you. Something about a basilisk?"

"Oh, yes…", Harry said vaguely. He hesitated, he knew if he said something now, Henry would examine him – but he had caused so many problems already… He decided against it. "That was the monster, but it's dead now… I need to go see her now, I need to head back then I'm missing the party for defeating the monster, and it won't go unnoticed, I came up with an excuse but-"

Henry nodded before he even finished. "Go, then. We'll talk later."

Groaning inwardly – for it had taken him quite some effort to convince everyone he did not need a healer, that it was not his blood… Well, not all of it anyway, he thought grimly. He knocked on the door and walked in. Jane was sitting up on a hospital bed, pale but looking decidedly better. He smiled.

"You know, we need to work on our plans", Harry said casually.

"True. Do you still want to learn how to defend yourself?", she asked.

"Yes, it seems my DADA teacher have a knack for trying to kill me – you would think it stood in their service agreement or something…" The look on Jane's face told him she was not amused.

"I'll arrange something.", she said.

"Glad to hear that. Join us?", Harry asked.

"Well… yes, I think it's foolish to think I'll keep being anonymous."

Harry nodded.

"Are you going to start, or should I?", she asked quietly.

"You should never have gone that far, Jane. I get you don't want a little girl to die, and neither do I but it's not worth you're life… You need to be more careful-"

"Henry and I talked about it. What happened, in hindsight… I had used my powers to heal minor things, but this was so much bigger. I just couldn't control my powers. And for that, I need to stop denying. I need to acknowledge that I have powers, and I'll have to learn to control them. That's different from now, now I'm learning how to suppress them and to hide them. But that's not right. I've suffered for those powers. I associated them with that, and refused to use them. But… I can do something good with them, I've seen that now. I'm going to train – oh, don't look like that, I'm not going to maim myself so I can cure myself. It'll be just if I get hurt, like a bruise or a scrape, that I can heal that. And we'll move on when I'm ready to bigger things."

Harry nodded, relieved. "What do you have to say to me?"

"You took just as big of a risk today, Harry. Taking on Lockheart? –"

"It's not like I can't have him!", Harry said offended.

"That's not the issue. You should've alerted someone. Also before you went in the Chamber. I made a mistake there, too. We should never have gone on our own, Harry. We are only twelve; we can't take on the world on our own."

"They would never have let us come, we would've lost to much time. Ginny could've died-"

"You could've send Ron."

"He has as much right to rescue his sister as I do, if not more."

"It was too much of a risk, Harry."

"It had to be done."

"But should we have done it?"

"I don't see any other Parseltongues –"

"Should we have gone alone? What if there had been something else that killed us. They still couldn't have saved Ginny then. You need to realise your life has it's value, too. _You, no WE need to be more careful."_

"You're right. I wasn't thinking straight.", Harry admitted, looking down.

"I know. It's natural. But next time, do alert someone, okay?"

Harry nodded. He saw her eyes drop, and not much later she fell asleep. Looking at his watch, he sprinted back to Hogwarts. He came at the feast without anyone noticing, thank Merlin. He celebrated with the others as the petrified people joined them, as exams where cancelled and when it became clear Lockheart would not come back.

**Ah, this is been way to long. Apologies, dear readers. Hopefully year three will be slightly faster.**


	16. Chapter 16

**As we obviously didn't quite get there last chapter, here is the summer between second and third year, maybe even the beginning of third year itself… Witch I found dead depressing, only matched out by fifth year. But enough of my babbling.**

It was the first week of the summer holidays, and Harry went to visit Jane. He knew she would be cleared today, finally leaving the hospital wing under her house. Miriam had insisted on building that when she started teaching horseback riding. He smiled to himself when he rounded a corner and saw her waiting in front of her house, smiling broadly.

"Happy to be released?", he teased.

"You bet. Being stuck in a bed and not be able to do anything, ugh.", she replied, shaking her head.

"And what do you want to do today?", he asked cheerfully. He had missed their walks, both on foot and on horseback.

"I thought you'd never ask!", she replied equally cheerfully, nearly bouncing with enthusiasm. Such a blatant display of enthusiasm was not really her thing and he was getting quite curious what they were going to do. She ushered him inside.

"We need to floo to my residence in France.", she said, still smiling mysteriously.

"And what, pray tell, are we going to do there?", Harry asked, trying to hide his smile. He was glad she felt better, both mentally and physically.

"Ah no, can't tell… It's your birthday present, and I don't think you'll mind it coming early.", she replied, passing him the floo powder. "Guests first! Just say 'ambassador's house, France'."

"Doesn't the ministry watch international floo?", Harry asked frowning.

"Ah… So glad you ask, I can show off a little. Now, I informed the ministry in Great-Britain that my sister and I would be travelling France. But off course, hardworking fresh entitled ambassador that I am, I cannot take off and leave for two months. I really need to come back each day, for an update of our _esteemed_ Prime Minister. And my poor sister, she would not want to stay in a foreign country, on her own, when she does not speak its language very well, poor dear. So, she has to come back with me.", she said, nodding earnestly.

Harry snorted. "And your sister, has become… a boy?"

"Ah, no… Should they ask, my poor sister could not come along, and you did not want me to go alone, so you decided to accompany me, being the right gentleman, you are.", she said innocently.

He shook his head. There were times she seemed to think of everything. He flooed to her house, which seemed dark and empty. Harry frowned. Normally, she would've asked the house-elf to light some candles… He heard noise behind him, and turned around, wand already drawn. Smiling apologetically, Jane fell out of the fire. "Sorry, international floo is a bit harder…"

Harry frowned a little deeper. He had noticed nothing of sorts, and normally she maintained her balance perfectly well while flooing. Maybe she hadn't fully recovered yet, but how had she been able to hide that from the diagnostic spells? Then his blood froze, and he threw her on the ground, a spell he didn't recognise flying above their heads. He retaliated with a quick disarming spell, which was blocked but gave them the opportunity to find cover behind the fire place.

He looked at her questioningly, but that split second was enough to get disarmed. Wandless, he stood before a dark figure, half hiding Jane behind him.

"Ah, mister Moody! We have written each other, correct?", she said, coming from behind Harry with her hand outstretched ready for a hand shake.

"Drop the dagger, missy.", the dark-clad figure grumbled.

She smiled apologetically and put her dagger neatly on the fire place, stepping away from it. Harry stood still, thinking fast. If she had written this man, why did he attack them?

"If we have corresponded then you should know the password, missy.", the man grumbled. It seemed to be his natural voice; Harry reflected. He saw Jane looking confused, but her expression brightened not a minute later.

"Nice play, Alastor Moody. But there was no password, for 'each used password can be guessed by accident or is too difficult to remember, or even tortured out of someone. But off course, for you that is no problem'." She looked at him. "Smart."

"It seems to be Jane Davidson. You should have done the same, missy. Checking that it was really me.", he replied.

"Indeed. But I did."

"Oh, yes?", Moody grumbled.

"Indeed. Only a true Auror would have seen I was still armed. Using the mirror over there to make your spells rebound at us was smart, and testified of experience. That's how you suddenly seemed to be somewhere else.", she shrugged, smiling lightly to herself.

"So, you looked into me?", Moody replied, throwing them their wands. Jane lit the candles with a swash of her wand, and the three of them sat down. Harry studied Moody's scarred face, not bothering to hide it – this was a man who would know anyway.

"I would not do well to hire a tutor in Defence who did not have the know-how. I might as well safe myself the effort."

Moody nodded. "You did not tell me who you were going to bring."

"For it should remain secret. You realise there is a minimum of security here, as I did not even inform my own government, for they would not have permitted it, because they would not like to offend the British government by implicitly calling them incompetent."

"And you are their ambassador."

"Something I can only be if I'm alive. For that, I need to be able to defend myself. And I believe it's obvious why Harry Potter should learn that. As we are friends, I thought it would be better to combine. But you need to swear, you never breathe a word of this to anyone, without his explicit permission.", she said decidedly. "I'm going to need you to sign a binding magical contract."

Moody nodded, and she handed him the contract with a feather. Harry noticed that Moody did not use the feather, but took one of his own. It appeared that this man was very careful, he thought. Witch was proven when Moody cast various spells on the contract and read it like he was about to recite it from literally. But finally, he signed.

"So… How do we begin?", Harry asked.

"We already did. Tell me what you did wrong when you countered my attack.", Moody replied.

"I did not have my wand at ready.", Jane stated simply. She had never felt the need to either. She did practise magic in this very house, but there had never been a moment she had felt she was in danger, as she had a personal guard on official business. In other circumstances, she never even left the house, except on a few occasions.

"I have a solution.", Harry replied, digging in his pockets. "Consider it an early birthday present. I owl-ordered it." She studied what he had brought: two identical wand holsters except that hers was for her left arm, and his for his right.

"Good thought. It should've been on.", Moody commented. "And you?"

"I did not follow up my disarming charm with something else."

"True. What else?", Moody asked. Seeing them look at each other in confusion, he continued. "Your environment. You used the fire place to hide, but did you consider the poker beside it? You could've simply levitated it and directed it to me. Speaking of the fire place, you hid before you knew where I was. It's good that you react immediately after being attacked, but you have to know where the threat is."

"Now here are some training dummy's, shoot as much spells at it as you can, and vary. You have a minute. Begin!"

And they began. It amazed Harry how difficult it was, deciding what spell he would have to fire. Later, when they reviewed, he noticed he knew a lot more spells than he had thought. For some, it had simply not occurred to him to use them in a duel. For others, it had been simply not having thought of them.

They had one day off, and Harry spent that day talking with Lara. Jane on her turn had been invited by the Prime Minister for an official tour on the Ministry – why he had waited with that for this long was beyond both of them, but as Jane said: "I get a headache when I try to imagine why he is doing something stupid – if I got payed each time, I'd be rich."

Whatever had happened that day, only a few days before Harry and Jane would have their last training, was still unclear. What he did know, however, was that Jane had come back pale, with eyes unfocused. She had been distracted, and had buried herself in paperwork, not breathing a word. Jane was increasingly stressed out, he had noticed. And more at work. Probably something had happened there. She had not slept well ever since, waking in the dead of the night. He had come across her on every hour of the night, when he himself woke from nightmares of what could have happened in the Chamber.

Apart from that day, they trained for the entire summer. At times, they learned new spells. But most of the time was spent duelling; Harry and Jane against each other, but also with each other. They learned to use their environment, and they learned to trust each other and play to their strengths. The end of the summer came closer and closer, and today would be their last training day. Knowing Moody, a snowball in a desert had more chance then this day being an easy last day.

They came out of the floo, as per usual Harry excited first. He noticed the candles were lit. Looking behind, he saw Jane stumbling out of the floo. She looked around and pointed to something on the floor – something red, dark that looked an awful lot like blood. They looked at each other, drawing their wands in unison. They moved to the trapdoor quietly. In the back of his mind, Harry considered the possibility that it was an exercise. Was it possible to conjure fake blood with magic? Probably, he thought. But he couldn't be sure, so he assumed it was not. Getting down the stairs, they heard voices on their right. Checking the room on their left first, they looked at each other. Jane gestured to move in quickly and loudly, hoping to stun them fast. He agreed, it was the best tactic.

And so they did. But the room was empty, except for-

"Duck!", Harry yelled, throwing Jane on the ground. He cast a quick glance to the right of the room. Half hidden in the shadows stood a dark figure, using the wall to rebound curses. Jane pulled him in cover – she had thrown a table on the ground while he was looking for the threat – and they shared a look. They sprang into action, diving from a side of the table each. Jane banished some furniture in the attacker's direction, while Harry shot a few full-body binds. But their opponent blocked their attacks with ease, and they went into cover. They shared another look, and went onto plan two. Harry sprang to the other side of the table, throwing as much curses as he could with one hand and throwing what he could with the other. He aimed them carefully – he made it look like two people were attacking. Jane sneaked behind their attacker, as what was bound to happen indeed happened: Harry was overwhelmed and hit by a knock-back jinx. And in the exact moment their opponent was distracted, wondering why both people had stopped firing, she cast a full-body bind; a perfect hit. After reviving their victim – it had indeed been Moody, and it had just been an exercise.

Reviving him, they sat down to review.

The week after that, Harry had to go back to the Dursleys, as aunt Marge was coming. Jane was working late on the last day of her visit, trying to catch up with work. Staring out of the window, she suddenly heard a soft tap. Startled, she knocked her ink over her paperwork. Cursing softly – it was late, the other had retired to their rooms already – she went to check what it was. Staying in cover, she noticed a dark figure standing just outside of the light. Squinting her eyes, she thought it the figure had something beside him. Was it…? She dashed down the stairs as quick and silent as she could. Jean, her personal guard, had woken, too. Signalling for her to stand down, he went for the door. She ignored him, and threw the door open, the person behind it nearly falling on his face.

"Harry?", she asked incredulously.

"Don't move", Jean said, keeping his wand on Harry.

"What did I say when we first met?", she asked.

"Nothing. You wrote in a notebook, asking if I was all right.", he replied. "Because you were grieving."

Nodding to Jean, he stepped back. They went to her office.

"Who is the new guy?", Harry asked curiously. He looked out of breath and badly startled.

"Jean. Personal security. What happened?", she asked, gesturing for him to take a seat.

"Aunt Marge… Said something about my parents. She is… not always tactful. And I just went loose. I used magic."

"Well, that means you'll get a warning."

"I didn't wait for that, last time- "

"Last time?", she asked softly and suspiciously.

"Ah, well… When that house-elf came, he dropped a pudding to prevent me from going back to Hogwarts, and I got a warning."

"Bloody English, I swear you think you know it all. Has it occurred to them they can tag the Mark to a magical signature? Because the French can."

"Ah well it is what it is."

"So, what did you do?", she asked.

"I ran away."

She stayed silent. "Were they that angry?"

"Heat of the moment.", Harry replied, not meeting her eyes.

She nodded. "I've got news, too. You've heard of Sirius Black, haven't you?"

"On the Muggle news", he replied confused.

"He escaped from Azkaban. Officially, he's arrested for murder on thirteen Muggles.", she said, trying to sound calm.

"What does that have to do with me?", Harry asked, slightly surprised.

"They say he wants to kill you.", she said carefully. As she had expected, he showed no sign of shock or surprise.

"Why?", Harry asked.

"Because… Because he was a follower of Voldemort. Because he was a friend of your parents.", she said softly.

Harry stayed silent for a while.

"Hang on, how do you mean 'officially'?", he asked.

"You know, I was there when your parents were betrayed. I remember… It was after the I-don't-know-how-many torture session. He was asking and asking about their location and I kept silent. Someone came in, standing in the shadows. He said something like 'the Potters have appointed me as secret-keeper, my Lord. I can take you there'. And they left, after Voldemort arranged for me to stay with Death Eaters in France. My first foster parents… I remember that voice. For me, it meant all the pain and suffering and dead was for _nothing_. I've never felt so hopeless…"

She trailed off, trying to gather courage. "Fudge took me with him to Azkaban as a state visit. We visited Black… And he asked for the newspaper. I did not recognise his voice.", she said looking down.

"So… It was not him who betrayed my parents?"

"You know what that means? I've kept silent, and my silence has cost an innocent man twelve years in prison. Twelve years with dementors, reliving his worst memories over and over again… Never a break. Most people are insane. They're screaming, threatening, laughing like maniacs… They don't know where they are, who they are, what year or month or day it is. Dead would be more merciful.", Jane said desperately.

"But it's possible his voice changed because of lack of use, or he twisted it.", Harry said.

Stumbling to a chair, Jane nodded. "In theory, yes. But that's not why I've kept silent, and that is my point."

"It would help no one to come clean now, Jane. He is coming for me anyway, and he will get to me. You can't protect someone perfectly forever… I suppose that's why you have Jean?"

She nodded. "It'll be all right, Jane. We'll get to the bottom of it."

"You can't be hoping a mass murderer will come after you on my behalf!"

"I don't have to. Rationally, you know it's true. I'll try my best to not face him alone. But security can't be tight, not for years – and you know, one way or another, he has planned this for years."

They sat down for a while.

"But why now?", Harry asked suddenly.

"What?", she asked vaguely, still drowning in guilt.

"Why escape now? What changed? What is different this year from the twelve years before this? Was it a lack of security, or did something happen?"

"Why is that relevant?", Jane asked frowning.

"Because, if we know why he escaped, we know what he is going to do."

"We are not going after him!", Jane exclaimed.

Harry gestured for her to be a little quieter. "Why not? You rather wait until he has found one of us?", he demanded.

"Because Aurors will catch him."

"And if they do, why not escape again?"

"They say it was exceptional, dark magic."

"Then why not use it again? Why is Black the only one using it? Is he the only one who learned, or the only one sane enough to use the magic? Because if not, others will escape. Then we are looking at a ticking bomb."

"Bloody hell.", she whispered. The thought had not even crossed her mind yet.

"See, this is why it is necessary to know. Fudge won't do it. He wants to protect his name."

They stayed silent. "What did you think about the investigation?", he asked.

"From what I've seen, they went the wrong way. They arrested him and then the investigation started. They already declared him guilty; another suspect was never in sight. All the evidence should be looked at in a neutral way, not like 'he's guilty and all this has to prove it'-way."

"And what if we do that?", Harry asked calmly.

"It's been twelve years.", Jane pointed out.

"Indeed. Cold cases exist and are solved, you know."

"Okay… We start the night of your parent's dead. Sirius Black did not rat them out. Who did?", she asked herself.

"Who do you ask such an important task?", Harry asked rhetorically. "Good friend… Probably from Hogwarts."

"I looked into it: your father had a friend group of 3 friends."

"We should talk to them…", Harry mumbled, look perturbed.

"Well… Peter Pettigrew was killed with the Muggles. Remus Lupin is alive, but withdrew from public live; there is no trail of him."

Harry looked at her questioningly. "I needed to know for myself, but… I thought you might not want to know, and I didn't want you to do this because of me." He nodded.

"And my mother's friends?", he asked.

She shook her head. "Most of them had children themselves; I can't see your parents asking for such a thing. You know, the location can be tortured out of someone, if they are in such pain they _need_ to give up, because they would go insane. Your parents would not ask such a sacrifice of people with young children."

"So… We should look for Remus Lupin then."

They looked at each other, and sighed.

"But how did he escape prison?", Harry asked frowning. "You make it seem like there was never an outbreak before."

"There wasn't. But according to his OWLs, he was very gifted."

"Not to mention, he had a goal in mind.", Harry said nodding. He knew he had the same tendency.

"You should head back now.", Jane said.

Harry sighed. "And where have I been for all this time?" He was right, Jane realised. About half an hour had passed.

"Walking?"

"No one saw me. No… I think I'm heading to Gringotts. I'll be recognised, they call in the ministry and I'll be 'found'. No questions, because I've travelled rather long. No need to bother the Muggles either."

"Take the Knight Bus then.", she said, slightly exasperated. Walking, come on now…

"Just hold your wand arm and it'll come. It can bring you everywhere, and its whereabouts are logged by the Ministry. Probably, someone'll be there to collect you."

"Thanks, Jane", he said, giving her a hug.

"Travel safely."

Harry took the bus without problem. He did notice the dog following him around, until he got on the bus. He was surprised the Prime Minister was the one collecting him. He'd never thought the man would risk being out for him, and he felt touched; until he realised it was probably only for publicity's sake. But against his expectations, no picture of him was in the papers. He met the Weasley's and Hermione in Diagon Alley, and heard the Weasley parents discuss whether he should know. He couldn't understand why miss Weasley did not want him to know – honestly, had he been such a cry-baby? – but at least her husband had more confidence in him. All in all, he was glad to board the train on the first of September, though he was disappointed Jane and Lara had decided not to come for another year, so as not to increase the risk of Sirius Black attacking them. After all, he thought, she was the only witness who could possibly tie him to betraying his parents, if he was guilty. Harry changed his opinion about Black being guilty all the time. He just couldn't imagine why the man never had said something about his innocence, but the alternative was even scarier: had he claimed to be innocent, and had no one investigated?

**On this rather dark note, I'm going to call this chapter to an end. Next chapter will hold a surprise, and the first important deviation from canon (apart from the MC). Please, if you are reading this, leave a message. I'm… Quite down, to be honest. I feel like no one is reading this, and if so, who am I writing for? So, if you feel I should continue, let me know. Stay safe and healthy!**


	17. Chapter 17

**Well, here we are again… A lot later than I had hoped, since it's been a madhouse around here. I thank you for your patience! As always, feel free to leave a review, PM me if you don't want to publicly post something.**

Jane had decided to stay in Hogsmeade the whole year. She had decided to take on the garden, planting had a rather calming effect on her. She had minimised her public events even more than before. Fudge would have to understand. Her boss did. With Sirius Black on the loose… Fudge didn't know just how much reason she had to fear him, but she'd said something about needing more time to adjust. She was reading up on plants she could plant in the garden, when she heard someone bursting through the door downstairs.

Alarmed, she looked up. She and Harry had agreed to restrict his visits to the bare minimum, as long as Black was on the loose. Neither of them was sure he was guilty, but why take a risk? The person ran upstairs noisily, and came bursting through the door.

"You're here…", Harry said vaguely. He was pale, his eyes were frantic and his hands were shaking.

She looked at the clock, realising with a start it was nearly midnight. "What on Earth happened?!"

"The ministry searched the train…", he said, trailing off with a distant look in his eyes.

"Ah, Fudge had a good thought!", she exclaimed excitedly. Honestly, what could be wrong with that? Though she did not like the look Harry gave her; it was his patented I-know-you-are-not-going-to-like-this-and-I-don't-know-how-to-tell-you-look. "Where the Aurors that bad?"

"Nooo…", he said, drawing the word out as if to win time, "They had Dementors do it."

She looked at him in disbelieve. "I believe I stand corrected.", she said faintly. It took her a few moments to wrap her head around it.

"Fudge has them guarding the school."

"How did you get out? *", Jane asked frowning. Having a chat with Dementors was a difficult task.

"Same as always. Asked your gift to show me the way to you. There is a tunnel until Zonko's, and then under the Invisibility Cloak."

She nodded. That was good thinking.

"I've got a… question.", he said slowly, not looking at her.

"Yes?"

"If you encounter a Dementor… You review your worst memories. Is it possible that you… remember more from that time?"

She pondered the question a while. "I'm not an expert… But I believe, if you are confronted with your past, you might remember something, yes. Should I ask someone?" Harry looked doubtful. "I'll not mention you.", she promised. He nodded, and she studied him a while. She wanted to ask why he had asked that, but she didn't dare do it now.

"I've got another question."

He sounded like he wasn't sure he wanted the answer now, but she waved him on.

"Do you keep books on the war in the library?"

A little surprised, she nodded. "I'm going to have a quick look."

"Well, that's why I have them, so that someone can read them.", she said, a little surprised. He had never shown interest, not apart from his parents or their friends. He knew the basics, of course, but more than knowing the causes of the war and the main parties had not been his interest.

Harry nodded. "I've got a third question."

She raised a brow. "Yes?" This was intriguing.

"Conjuring a Patronus… It is difficult, isn't it? Can someone lose the capability to produce one?"

"I'm not an expert on Patronus charm either, but that I do know. Yes, it is possible.", looking at him curiously. "Oh, I have news for you… Or actually, lack thereof. No lead on Remus Lupin, we keep looking."

"No need.", he responded evenly. "He's my new DADA professor."

And on that note, he left her for the library.

She stared into the fire, stunned. All those questions… What if Lupin had been on the Hogwarts Express, had chased the Dementor away? Had Harry just asked if it was possible that his DADA professor… Hadn't made use of an opportunity to kill him? Given the history of his DADA teachers, it was certainly a logical train of thought…

Perhaps after the Dementor had been chased away… he had remembered something about Lupin? But what could it possibly be, and why the sudden interest in the war? No, she decided. It didn't add up… She was missing a piece of the puzzle. Lost in thought, she kept staring into the fire.

It had barely been fifteen minutes when Harry re-emerged, saying he went back to Hogwarts. Any questions she had died on her lips, when seeing the distant look on his face. Now was definitely not the time, he needed space.

Jane was surprised when, for the second day in a row, someone came bursting through the door. She was shocked how bad Harry looked.

"Two days in a row! To what do I owe this pleasure?"

"Hagrid's teaching COMC.", Harry started.

"I've heard. Dumbledore had no issues filing the paperwork proving he is capable, but his past… Well, it spoke against him. What electives did you take, aside from COMC?", she asked, wondering how she could've forgotten to ask that.

"Well… COMC and Arithmancy. I wanted to pick the same as Ron, but that's not how you should choose, I believe. I like maths, so… But that's not the point. Hagrid started with Hippogriffs."

"That's an exciting lesson… But since you said plural, perhaps too much to watch all at once. But I suppose, as a starting teacher, he is still learning." Noticing the look on Harry's face she added: "I don't think Hagrid meant any harm, and teaching requires thinking things through in a different way. It's only logical he needs time to adapt."

"Malfoy insulted it.", Harry said annoyed. "Hagrid warned us not to, but he did anyway. I want to help Hagrid."

"That's nice of you… I think I better don't get involved officially, but if you need unofficial help, I'm here. And so is my library."

Harry looked down. "Thank you, for not asking anything yesterday."

"Anytime.", she replied softly, walking off.

"Jane?"

"Yes?"

"When you went to Azkaban… Did you remember your parents?", he asked, not meeting her eye.

Walking back, she sat down beside him on the couch, where he had dropped in the middle of his explication. "Yes.", she said, looking down.

"I don't know what I remembered, but I think… I think it's… _that_ night."

Jane looked at him, at loss. What could she possibly say?

"I'm sorry you had to go through that. But you won't have to face it again."

"I just wish… I wish I could remember them. I wish I could talk to them, even for five minutes."

"I know, Harry. I know. I feel the same. And I know this: wherever they are, they are proud of you. They love you."

They stayed silent. Jane sighed; happy Harry had spoken up after all. But looking at him, she saw there was something else. Eyeing at him questioningly, he sighed.

"Before the Hogwarts Express left… Mr. Weasley wanted to tell me about Sirius Black."

Jane nodded. She had met him on the Ministry, and he had indeed looked like an honest man. He was not the type to keep things like that from Harry - luckily.

"And then… He asked me not to go looking for Black. No matter what. He wanted me to promise it."

Jane frowned. "Have you made such an instable impression he thought you would chase a madman?"

"Well…"

"First and second year don't count, Harry. I agree we should have been more careful, but you did not go chase a Basilisk for fun. Neither did you go after the Stone for a challenge. You were seeking to protect those you love. While admirable, your strategy is not recommended. There's a whole difference between all that and hunting down someone who supposedly murdered 13 people!"

"But I don't understand – "

"Neither do I, Harry. We'll only find out if we continue investigating."

Harry nodded. Looking at the clock, he said he should head back. It was late at night, and they said their goodbyes.

On Halloween, after all the others had left for Hogsmeade (officially) Harry came again, looking distracted. It was almost becoming a habit, she thought gloomily.

They talked a bit, mostly about their dead parents. Jane talked a bit about the one time his parents had visited hers – specifically for this occasion, she had tried to remember as much as possible. This day, they had agreed, would not be a celebration of Voldemort's 'death', but about those who had given their lives in the war.

"Speaking about that… You know, First of September? After the Dementor… I… remembered a scene with Remus.", Harry said, trailing of.

"Yes?", she encouraged, noticing he had begun using the man's first name.

"He… You've got to promise to never tell anyone this, Jane.", looking older and more serious than she could ever remember him.

"I promise", she said curiously while locking eyes.

"He's a werewolf."

Jane stiffened visibly, her hearing fading out. She heard Harry talking, as if he was miles away…

"… Where fighting of a Boggart. I was next, and he placed himself between us. And I saw the Boggart changing into a full moon. And then it all made sense, I remembered he was sleeping so deep on the train, because that night would be the full moon, I looked that one up.** And then my memory made sense, my father was asking him if he made progress infiltrating, that's why I looked the war up, he was spying on the werewolves, largely on Voldemort's side… Jane? Jane! Are you all right?!"

"Right. Right. Fine." Breathe in, breathe out she reminded herself. Nice and slowly, count to five.

"You don't look like it.", Harry remarked dryly.

She looked down. "When I started to rebel against the Death Eaters keeping me… When they realised, I could call a shield… Whenever I had done something wrong, something big… They hit me first, looked me in the shed with the werewolves at full moon… They – they are not human anymore when they change, they smelled the blood and attacked and kept attacking… Later, when I was older, they took me and forced me to watch them attack children, to harden me… I recall one time, a girl was pleading for help, she was my age and I… I knew I would be punished most severely, and they were standing next to me. And I- I dropped the shield, I tried to let the girl run away, to force their attention on us but I couldn't hold it, I lost control and instinctively the shield was around us again and the girl – the girl was dead. I killed her, because I lost control they could – they could…"

"No. You were a child held hostage under gruesome circumstances. You can't blame yourself for losing control over something like that! You can blame the werewolves; you can blame the Death Eaters but _it's not your fault_. You hear me, Jane? Not your fault."

She looked down. Instinctively, she knew there was a truth in his words. She could not understand how Harry could stand being around her, but if someone truly so good believed in her, perhaps her perception had been wrong. Perhaps it wasn't her fault after all…

"There's something else."

Harry raised his eyebrows. She clearly did not want to talk about this one, but she forced herself on.

"Once, Henry was treating this young kid with a leg injury. And we talked… We became a bit of friends." Harry nodded, remembering the kid. They had not exchanged a word, but he had heard from Henry the kid had a lasting injury. "Until one day… We were talking about him, and Lara said something – and I realised he was a werewolf. And… my first reaction was disgust. I stopped talking to him… But then I overheard all the measures he insisted on to keep us safe, and I realised I had wronged him. I had assumed they were all monsters, but that's like saying the whole wizarding world is like Voldemort. So, I went to apologise… And when I saw how much it had hurt him, I swore I would never judge a book by its cover again, so to speak."

They remained silent for a while, then she smiled sadly and looked at him.

"Perhaps you're wondering why I'm telling you this. I'll explain: werewolves, in their wolf form, on full moon, are not to be reasoned with. The wolf takes over – but there's a potion nowadays that prevents that. Anyway, you have to remember that, except on that night once a month, werewolves are only humans. There are nasty ones, there are good ones. I sincerely hope professor Lupin is one of the last ones."

They sat in silence, until it was time for Harry to go back. Harry realised the potion he had seen Lupin drinking was probably the potion Jane was talking about, and he silently thought that it was kind of professor Snape to brew it for someone he clearly despised.

That same night, after he had left, her floo roared. Jane ran downstairs, instantly knowing this was bad news. She was just in time to see Patrick emerge, followed suit by Henry.

"What's going on?", she asked the former ambassador of Magical France.

She saw them exchanging a look.

"Why don't you sit down, dear?", Henry said, smiling weakly. But he was too distraught to really pull it off.

"I rather stand.", she said curtly. "Get on with it, will you?", she whispered.

"Sirius Black broke into Hogwarts.", Patrick said. Seeing her questioning gaze, he added: "A source at the Ministry reported it. Apparently, Fudge is in a bad mood because Dumbledore doesn't let his guards in, but- "

"Any casualties?", she asked sharply, unable to keep the question in for any longer.

"No.", Patrick replied evenly.

Frowning, she asked: "Why are you here, then?", looking at Henry.

"I didn't want you to hear it alone. I wanted to be there for you, now Harry can't come."

She nodded. "Any word from him?"

"Not yet.", Henry replied, "but possibly he just can't sneak off right now."

That was probably the case, she realised.

"Hey Patrick- you said they didn't allow Fudge's guards in, does that mean he changed the Dementors into Aurors?"

"What Dementors?!", both men asked, equally surprised.

"Well, Fudge had the marvellous idea to have them search the train."

Both men stared at her in shock.

Harry managed to send her an owl, saying he was okay and had been at the feast when Black had broken in. She sighed, rereading his messages again:

_Dear J,_

_I'm sorry to simply have to write to you. It seems, the castle either counts more teachers than ever, who are taking my route more than ever; either they follow me. And not only the teachers, but some Gryffindors, too. In that light..._

_First and foremost: no one was harmed. We all were at the feast. The portrait guarding the entrance was attacked, but it is strange. I could not see it very well, but it's not beyond repair. I was thinking, perhaps the portrait was not attacked to destroy it, but to make the Fat Lady run, so she could not tell where he went. Or maybe I'm reading too much in it._

_On the night of the attack, I overheard professor Snape saying he didn't trust someone new. As I see it, the candidates for that role are limited. I wonder whether professor Snape suspects Lupin of more than one Halloween incident, namely the attack on my parents. But why he didn't come forward, is beyond me. Perhaps I'm reading too much in that either._

_Hoping you are well,_

_HJP_

Underneath that, there were more letters. One from Hermione, who had found out about professor Lupin's condition, and one from Harry, about his Quidditch match tomorrow. He had also noted that professor Snape had tried to out professor Lupin, given the fact he had taught about werewolves.

She sighed, stumbling to a chair. So many question, so little leads… It was going to be one hell of a year.

*** I forgot to clear that one up, should have done that in first year… Sorry about that.**

**** Yes, I'm such a nut that I actually looked that one up.**


	18. Chapter 18

**It's been way to long, again. I apologise, but I'm afraid it's going to continue like this until the summer holidays start in July. Uni's been a madhouse, pandemic or no pandemic.** **Second reason I'm late is that, when I was writing this, I went one way, but I couldn't continue it. It's kind of hard to explain… But it took a while until I'd found a way around it, without too much plot holes. On to the chapter itself!**

Harry stared at professor McGonagall with surprise on his face. He sighed, got up from his chair and walked to the window. Finally, finally she had told him about Black.

"Do you remember what you told the first year before the Sorting, professor?", he asked tonelessly.

She frowned in confusion.

"You said 'your house will be something like a family within Hogwarts'." *

He turned around. "You know professor, as head of House, you're family, too. And yet you withheld important information."

"The prime minister decided it was best to keep you in the dark."

"Indeed. And what right did he have to do that? He is in no way related to me, nor is he my guardian as he himself pointed out. So, who is he to say, what I'm to know and what not?"

"Mister Potter- "

"Professor", he interrupted, "I understand why you did it. But you should have told me. What would have happened, if he had come to my house, saying professor Dumbledore had asked to collect me? I would've gone. My death would be on the minister. But at least he is a stranger, I can forgive him for thinking I might not be able to handle the truth. But you know me, you should know I can handle this."

She stayed silent for a while. "You are well hidden-"

"He was my father's friend. Have you considered that he knows where my aunt lives?" She frowned, but continued her original message.

"Now you know the danger, you understand that you cannot train with the Quidditch team anymore."

He frowned. "Because the Quidditch field is so open?", he asked.

"I'm sorry, mister Potter."

He nodded. "I understand, professor. But if I had a security team, a reliable team, without bothering the staff, would I be able to keep training then?"

She looked thoughtful. "Yes, I believe so, mister Potter. But where would you be able to find a security team?"

"If I can find one, and present them to you around eight in the evening, would that be all right?"

"If you can, yes. But I don't see how- "

"Until tonight then, professor.", he replied, leaving.

He immediately left for Jane's house.

"You don't know per chance where I could find a security team, don't you?", he asked, sighing.

"Depends on why you need one", she replied, smiling faintly.

"They won't let me train otherwise.", Harry said.

"Hm. If you don't mind me watching, then my team can watch both of us?", she proposed.

Harry smiled. "Excellent idea."

"Wait, you mean you're coming?"

"Officially to test my boundaries. Unofficially to find out how Black entered."

"Thanks, Jane.", he said, leaving for the castle.

"Thank you for having me, professor."

"Of course, of course!", professor Dumbledore replied smiling. "It rarely happens we have a true diplomat among the student body, how could I not?"

"I'm still in training, professor.", Jane replied, smiling, looking to the stones next to his head. She didn't want him to read her mind.

"I must admit, I am surprised you want to attend Hogwarts. Mostly, one chose either home-schooling or Hogwarts."

"I was unfortunately not fit to attend Hogwarts the previous years. I hope you received my exam results of those years?"

"Indeed, I have, miss Davids. So, you want to follow lessons for a week?"

"Indeed, professor."

"If you don't mind me asking, why?"

"I can sense emotions. As you can imagine, with big crowds comes a lot of information. I had to learn how to block it. However, if I were to attend Hogwarts, I would need to be certain I'm capable of that control in this environment. I'm a careful person, and I want to be certain of that before I chose to attend."

"Well then, I give you permission. Perhaps it is best if you had some student guiding you. Do you know someone?", professor Dumbledore asked.

"Yes, I know Hermione Granger." Professor Dumbledore looked doubtful. "Apart from that, my government insists that I have some personal guards discreetly watching. I'm told Hermione is often with Harry Potter. And we both know why he would need protection, don't we?"

"Indeed, miss Davidson." He remained thoughtful for a while. "I'll allow it."

"Thank you, professor."

Jane looked to the scene in front of her and declared them officially barking mad. It was a lightning storm, for Merlin's sake, but of course Quidditch couldn't be cancelled! She saw from the looks Ron and Hermione were giving each other before the match, they didn't like it either. She hoped Harry had more and faster luck in finding the Snitch than she had had finding the place were Black had entered. She had followed the confusing trail of his emotions until halfway the third corridor, but had no idea where he went from there. She had sought out the entire third floor, but found no trace of him. Jane sighed, concentrating back on the match, which had just begun.

When Gryffindor was leading by fifty point, their captain called a time out. She nudged Hermione.

"He doesn't stand a chance with his glasses, can't see anything in this rain…"

Hermione turned to her excitedly. "I've an idea!", storming of.

She and Ron exchanged a glance, shrugging. Neither had an idea what she was thinking off.

"I made them waterproof!", Hermione announced happily as soon as she came back.

Jane smiled. "Great idea. The captain's looking way happier."

And indeed, with new determination, the match was resumed. Jane focussed on Harry.

She frowned when she saw him hanging still, wondering what he was thinking. She was distracted by the team's captain, grimacing when she saw the opposing Seeker sprinting towards something. She shivered – and groaned. For the pitch had just filled with Dementors. This wouldn't be good…

The air got caught up in her throat when she noticed Harry was falling, falling from how high was it even, it didn't matter, nothing mattered… But thankfully, Dumbledore had kept his head. He conjured a Patronus and slowed Harry down. Jane, Ron and Hermione looked at each other, before running on the pitch. Dumbledore was levitating Harry carefully on a stretcher, walking fast towards the castle. The entire Gryffindor team, Ron, Hermione and Jane followed him.

Waiting outside when the nurse checked Harry was the worst feeling, she thought. Especially with the flashbacks to first year…

But finally, the nurse emerged, telling them Harry was just knocked out. Wood left immediately after that, as did Dumbledore, to announce the news to the school. It took another fifteen minutes before Harry woke.

Jane sat back and relaxed a bit, while the team was talking. She would have to talk to her security team, as they clearly didn't do a very good job…

After the team left and she finally had managed to convince Ron and Hermione to go to the dinner, she asked: "What's wrong, Harry?", sitting on the bedside.

He stayed silent for a while. "I heard my mother. That night…"

She looked at him. "Come here.", and they simply sad there, holding each other, while she waited until his sobs subsided.

"Thanks.", he murmured.

"What else is on your mind?"

"The Dementors. Why do they affect me so much?"

"Because you've seen so much, at such a young age.", she replied softly.

They stayed silent for a while.

"I'm going to ask professor Lupin to teach me to defend myself."

She stared at him thoughtfully. "I can't change your mind, can I?" He shook his head. "You have to realise; this is going to be hard. That magic is complex, and you'll have to relive it more than once to learn."

"I thought so. I need to do this."

"Yeah…", she said distractedly, "but… what about…"

"Jane?", Harry asked softly. She didn't respond, as darkness closed around her.

**Harry's POV**

"Jane", he asked softly. He felt her go limp in his arms. "Jane?!"

Getting no response, he yelled: "Madame Pomfrey!"

The nurse came out of her office immediately. From the corner of his eyes, he saw two guys standing in the corners of the room. Jane's guards had cancelled their disillusionment charms.

The nurse had seen them, too. "Give me a hand, here!"

They pulled her on a nearby bed. Madame Pomfrey waved her wand a bit, before tutting. "Has she experienced any dizziness?"

"Yes.", Harry replied. "Hermione told me about a few times, were she has seen her nearly falling over. And stumbling. She was worried, and wanted to know if she should inform someone."

"For how long?", the nurse asked.

"Several months.", Harry replied, thinking back.

"She's extremely exhausted. Exerted to much magic. That on top of the Dementors knocked her out, but she ought to be good to go when she wakes. Just being a bit careful the coming days."

Harry sighed, knowing his friend well enough to know she would hate to take a break.

When he woke the next morning, Jane was already gone.

"Where did she go?", he asked Hermione.

"Her minister wanted a report.", she replied. "Jane was none too happy, especially since she couldn't even stay until you woke."

He frowned. He had hoped to talk to her about the Grim.

"You know Harry, this was predicted in Divination!", Ron said excitedly. "She said she had seen the Grim in relation to you in my teacup!"

"Nonsense, Ron!", Hermione replied heatedly. "It's impossible to say something about someone else! She's just an old fraud."

"You just don't like her because she said you didn't have talent for Divination.", Ron snapped back.

"Well if it means I have to pretend to see death omens everywhere, then I think I'll drop that course really quick!", she snapped back.

They continued bickering, but Harry tuned out. So, someone else had seen the Grim… This was getting ridiculous. He couldn't live looking for that beast everywhere!

Noticing their suspicious looks toward him, he quickly changed subject.

"Did Jane say anything before leaving?"

"She left you a note.", Hermione replied quietly, after checking that Madame Pomfrey was still in her office.

Harry nodded, and they chattered until the nurse kicked Ron and Hermione out. He quickly started reading.

_Harry_

_I found some intel. There's no record of a trial against Sirius Black. I even searched old newspapers, but didn't find a thing, except some reports on the events. They're on the table in my library. It's probably shielded from view for those not involved. Second thing, Remus Lupin has been filing reports yearly for a retrial. Nothing came of it, the minister withheld it. Officially because there was no new evidence and he's too involved, but as a werewolf, he hasn't got a lot of credit in the Ministry. Also, elections were coming up. Even the Wizengamot has tried, to no avail since the minister and his friends voted against a re-opening of the case. Said it would be to damaging to those involved. The problem is, if I ask for a re-opening, I need to have evidence of some kind._

_I hope you feel better soon. Try not to dwell on what you've heard; I know saying that is easy… I'm here for you, just like Ron and Hermione, okay?_

_JD_

It wasn't until the first day of Christmas holidays Harry saw Jane again.

"Now wo do we have here?", she asked cheerfully.

Harry sighed, knowing she wanted an update. "How much time do you have?"

"Sounds promising", she remarked dryly. "All day."

"Well… Professor Lupin promised to teach me the Patronus charm after the holidays. The Weasley twins gave me a map of Hogwarts yesterday, with some tunnels to Hogsmeade. One of them I was already using, of course. But I can also see where everyone is."

"That's some good enchantments.", she said thoughtfully.

"I used it to come to Hogsmeade, since your guards are standing watch anyway."

She nodded. "They reported that, indeed." She saw him looking and added: "I'm not going to lecture here Harry, it's not up to me to decide what you should and shouldn't do. You clearly gave thought to your safety and that is all I can ask."

"So unfortunately, the teachers and the Prime Minister came to the Three Broomsticks when we were there."

She groaned.

"They said…", his voice was trembling now and he hated it, "they said Sirius Black is my godfather. That he betrayed my parents, and that's how Voldemort knew where they were hiding."

"Merlin.", she whispered, shocked.

"That was what mister Weasley was referring too."

She nodded. "I didn't know."

"I thought so. But I need to look up Hippogriff baiting cases. Hagrid needs to defend himself."

"I feared it would come to that. I'll help.", she volunteered.

And as such, they both went to the Library.

Harry and Ron raced upstairs to the Gryffindor tower. It was Christmas, and Harry had received – among other presents – a Firebolt. He did wonder, however, why someone would send it without a card. Perhaps he should talk to Jane about it… Maybe she had sent it?

Ron and Harry had just made the Common Room when professor McGonagall showed up, followed by Hermione.

"So that's it, is it?", said professor McGonagall beadily, walking over to the fireside and staring at the Firebolt. "Miss Granger has just informed me that you have been sent a broomstick, Potter." **

Ron and Harry looked around at Hermione. They could see her forehead reddening over the top of her book, which was upside-down. **

Harry looked her in the eye, and said: "Yes, professor."

"No card with it?", she asked.

"No, professor.", he replied. He thought he knew what was coming.

"I'll have to take this, mister Potter.", she said, moving to take the broomstick.

But Harry rose from his chair. "Do you, professor? And why is that, exactly?"

"Don't be childish, Potter! We both know why. Give me that broomstick.", she ordered.

"As long as you insist on treating me like a child, I'll behave like one, professor.", he retorted, only a hint of anger in his voice. "Why do you think you should take it?", he repeated.

"It might be cursed by Sirius Black. -"

"You mean to say he can just walk into a shop to buy brooms?", Harry replied, feigning surprise.

"There is such a thing as owl-ordering, Potter.", she replied, nostrils flaring.

Harry nodded. "You make good sense there, professor."

"Then you'll see reason why it has to be stripped down. I'm sure professor Flitwick and madame Hooch will lend their expertise."

"That won't be necessary. After all, who better to check over a broom for curses then the broom company that manufactured it?", he replied easily.

"There's no need- ", she started.

But Harry interrupted her. "I don't deny your right to take this broom from me, as it is possibly dangerous. But I think, as it was gifted to me, I have the right the choose where I'm having it checked out." Professor McGonagall stood there, in shock. "I'll owl them right away.", he said, opening the window. A whole bunch of owls flew in, and professor McGonagall was surprised. Noticing this, he said: "you are not the only one who thought it might be cursed, professor. Merry Christmas." He turned around and sent the owls of with their package.

As soon as she left, Ron lashed out. "Why did you have to rat us out?", he shouted.

"I thought it might be cursed- "

"Yeah, well Hermione that's not the point. You could've told us what you thought, but you went behind our backs. - ", Harry started.

"You wouldn't have listened- "

"That's not the point! How could you know that, when you didn't even give us a chance?!"

Harry saw her open her mouth, but he'd had enough.

"I thought our friendship would've meant more to you. But clearly I was mistaken.", he whispered, storming up the stairs to his dorm.

The upcoming weeks didn't make him feel better. He had trouble facing the Dementor – or actually Boggart – since he secretly wanted to hear the voices of his parents. Jane was away on business, and he just couldn't convey his feelings in a letter. Hermione avoided them at all cost, and Harry couldn't think of a way to make up to her, but also tell her that she had hurt his feelings. Ron was equally angry. As if that wasn't enough, he sneaked out each night to search Jane's library to help Buckbeak's case, as during the day he couldn't find the time to do it. He'd never been so tired and stressed.

His misery was forgotten when both Jane and his Firebolt returned, allowing him to play the match on his new broom. Harry had had a good laugh when he saw Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle tangled in a cloak. Obviously, they had no idea what they were doing – was he supposed to just fall of his broom because a Dementor was there, without the effects? – but the good times only lasted too short. The final fight of Ron and Hermione about Scabbers had escalated, since Ron believed her cat had finally managed to eat Scabbers, and Hermione refused to admit her cat might have done that. When he had tried to make peace, all he got was a snap; after that, he stopped trying. But she kept looking worse, and he was thinking about contacting Jane. The only thing stopping him was that that was the exact reason they had first been mad with Hermione.

He sighed, and tried to sleep.

It wasn't long before he woke from a yell. Jumping out of bed and snatching his wand and glasses of the table, he looked around. He heard a door slamming. Ron's curtains were flapping and he sat up in bed, looking terrified.

"What happened?", Harry asked urgently.

"Sirius Black- "

It was all Harry had to hear.

"Barricade the doors.", he said shortly, making to leave.

"Maybe it was a nightmare?", Dean suggested.

"I don't want to find out with Black lurking over me.", he replied. "I'll knock three times fast and then two more times. Any other person except Percy you just hex."

"But- "

He left before they finished the sentence. He could hear the rumble of students waking up, coming down the stairs. Harry checked the Common Room – no one. He was just about to ask the portrait, when he heard Percy shouting to go back to bed. He went up the stairs to explain.

"Now it's enough!", professor McGonagall said.

"Professor, Ron was attacked by Sirius Black.", he interjected.

"It was a nightmare!", Percy replied.

"A nightmare that cut his curtains?", Harry shot back. "Those are not turn, look at the edges, they are too sharp to be torn."

"Ask him!", Ron said, gesturing to the portrait. Professor McGonagall sighed, but went outside.

"Have you let someone enter?"

"Yes indeed, he was reading the passwords from a card- "

She didn't wait until he finished. "What idiot has written the passwords and has lost them?", the professor asked, coming back in the tower.

Neville raised a shaking hand.

Harry had never felt for Neville like this. He was locked out of the tower; he had been yelled at by his grandmother and professor McGonagall and he was forbidden from entering Hogsmeade.

But today, Ron was going to Hogsmeade, and he was secretly following under the Invisibility cloak. He had hoped to have a peaceful day for once, but it was not to be. As Malfoy and his cronies had shown up, he'd been unable to resist the urge to pay them back for what they did to Hagrid and Buckbeak. Harry had thrown mud at them, and Ron and he had had the greatest fun – until the Invisibility cloaks was partly pulled of and his head was seemingly floating in the air. He'd made his way back as fast as he could, but he was only just out the tunnel when Snape found him. Luckily, he had left the Invisibility cloak behind.

"My office, Potter.", he said curtly.

"Why?", Harry asked, trying to act surprised.

"Now!", Snape snapped.

He followed without a word.

Snape spoke softly as soon as they were in his office. "Mister Malfoy was in Hogsmeade today, mister Potter. You know what he saw there?"

Harry simply waited.

"He saw your head there."

"I was not in Hogsmeade."

"Then where were you?", Snape asked coldly.

"I first went to the Gryffindor tower, but then I wondered if I had forgotten my work in the library. Halfway back there I realised I didn't, and then I went up to the owlery. I stayed there and then went wandering a bit. Then you found me." It would hopefully unfeasible to check all that.

Snape just shook his head. "You are lying, and I know it. Well, well. The great Harry Potter… never follows the rules, not even those put in place for his safety. Everyone, including the prime minister tries to keep him safe. -"

"Funny thing, that. How exactly did he do that, I wonder? He never told me Black wanted to kill me. He never told me Black escaped either. So, what did he do? Forbid me from going to Hogsmeade?" He put on a thoughtful expression. "No, I believe my guardians didn't sign. Hm… So, what did he do, professor?"

"You're an arrogant little snot, Potter! Just like your father, always strutting around- "

"As fascinating as your story is, professor, what exactly is your point?", he said, staring angrily at the wall.

"Empty your pockets!", Snape shouted.

He had gone too far, Harry thought to himself. Ah well, it was always going to come down to this…

He emptied his pockets, with the most interesting things some products from Zonko's and the Maurader's Map.

"And were does this come from, Potter?", Snape said, smiling in triumph.

"It's a gift.", he replied.

"From who?", the professor pressed on.

"I don't see how that is any of your business.", he replied evenly, in control once more.

"Listen up here, Potter! You've been seen out of bounds. There's no denying, you have the evidence in your pockets!"

"Evidence? You only have a testimony of my school enemy and a bag of Zonko's. For all you know, these can be a gift or even owl-ordered", he replied, sensing he had the upper hand.

Professor Snape glared, then looked at the table once again. "And what is this?", while holding the now whipped Maurader's Map.

"A piece of parchment, I believe."

Snape raised his eyebrows. "Then I can just… Destroy it?"

"No professor. I thought it's obvious that no professor can destroy a student's property.", he said sarcastically. He wasn't getting out of this without detention anyway, he realised.

"Or does it carry a secret message?", Snape said softly, not listening.

"Show your secrets!", he said, tapping the map with his wand.

Nothing happened. "I, professor Severus Snape, command you to show your secrets!"

Harry sat there, shocked, while the map insulted professor Snape. This was not likely to improve the situation, he thought solemnly.

"Well, well…", professor Snape said. He turned to the fire and called professor Lupin.

"See here, Lupin. This parchment found on mister Potter is clearly full of Dark Magic!", he said softly, eyes burning with anger.

Lupin looked at the map, and in that split second, Harry saw a flash of recognition. For a while it was silent, then-

"I don't think so, Severus."

"Don't you?! Don't you think he got it from the makers?", he said, glancing at Lupin. Harry frowned, feeling like he was missing out on something.

Lupin looked at Harry. "I don't know them!", Harry exclaimed before someone could say something.

"See there, Severus? I think those are Zonko's products-."

On that moment, Ron came bursting in. "These are mine. They are a present for Harry!"

"See? Come, Harry, Ron, we need to have a word.", and they went for the exit.

Harry was amazed at his luck.

"I've got to confiscate this map, Harry.", Lupin said. Harry nodded, having expected this.

"I need to apologise, professor. I… Wanted to be normal so much, that's why I went to Hogsmeade. I… Never considered the risks, as I should have", he said, trying to catch professor Lupin's eye, "It won't happen again.", he stated decisively.

Professor Lupin stared at him for a long time.

"Then I trust the message has sunk in, Harry. It was quite dangerous, what you did."

They nodded, and he and Ron returned to their tower.

"You're right. This… Hogsmeade is not worth your life, Harry.", Ron said, looking at him with a severe expression on his face.

They rounded a corner and saw Hermione, in front of the Fat Lady. They looked at each other and silently agreed they should have a little talk.

"Hermione?", Harry asked softly when they came a little closer. She looked very distraught.

"Hagrid has lost Buckbeak's case.", she said in a trembling voice.

*** quote from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. All credit to JKR.**

**** quote from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. All credit to JKR.**

***** loosely based on the same scene from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. All credit to JKR.**

**I've put a line instead of an enter, as I've noted they don't convert when I'm uploading. I hope it's better now.**

**I'm leaving it in the middle if Harry was in the right in professor Snape's office. On one hand, Snape is accusing him without evidence and insulting his late parents. On the other hand, Snape has a point when he says Harry hasn't been following the rules – more than once. Though who can claim they have never broken a rule? I'm more on Harry's side, I personally don't understand why he was never angry with the professors and the minister for keeping him in the dark like that. It was his life, and with all the things he has been through, I think the argument "he's too young" doesn't make sense. Especially from his professors… Though he has gone a little far in Snape's office. That was done on purpose, to show you that Harry still is a human with a temper. Though I would've lost it, too. I also think what professor Lupin said in the books quite harsh. He wanted to make Harry realise that he made a dangerous mistake, but in my opinion, he went all wrong about it. I also didn't like how he seemingly disappeared in the books, and in the following chapters I will try to give an explication to that.**

**I was hoping to wrap up third year after two more chapters, that's why this one is so long. Perhaps it wasn't my best idea.**

**For next update: I hope I can bring up another chapter before June, but if not, I'm afraid it will be coming in July. I have exams coming up, unfortunately. On the bright side: I can upload more after that.**


	19. Chapter 19

**Here I am again, with my strange update schedule (what schedule, actually…). I am sorry for that. I had not anticipated how busy this year has become. As always, I'm happy to address any remarks / questions, reviews or PMs.**

Harry could not believe his ears at first. They had all tried so hard. And Hagrid would not take this well…

Meanwhile, Hermione showed them the letter Hagrid had sent. He was so stunned he couldn't even focus enough to read it. Hermione continued about the appeal, saying nothing would change.

Exchanging a glance with Ron, he started: "Yes, something will change, Hermione. We'll help. We'll ask others to help, too." He saw that she understood he was talking about Jane here.

"Yes Hermione, we'll all help. We should've helped you out sooner, sorry Hermione.", Ron chimed in.

"Let's get to work.", Harry said decidedly.

"I should apologise, too, Harry. I shouldn't have gone behind your back about that broom…"

"I'm sorry, too, about lashing out on you earlier."

Ron cleared his throat. "I should apologise, too. I've been an arse to you."

"Yeah, well… I could've just admitted my cat has eaten your rat.", she said, a little red in the face.

They smiled a bit uneasily at each other. It was Ron who cleared his throat and suggested going to work.

Later that night, when all boys were in bed, he tried to communicate with Jane.

"_Jane?", he asked mentally._ It had been a long time since they had communicated like this, it was more practical to go down there in person. But since professor Lupin had the map, he couldn't out rule the possibility that he also knew how to work with it. Which in turn meant he couldn't sneak through the tunnels to Hogsmeade to talk to her in person.

"_Yes, I'm here. What happened?"_

"_A lot.", he replied._ He replayed his memories from going to Hogsmeade, laughing with Ron, the mud, Snape's office and the appeal.

"_What did you think he would find if he read your mind?"_, she asked. He could practically feel her frowning.

"_He's close with the Malfoys, I don't want him finding out who you are or even that we know each other._" *

"_Yeah, makes good sense. Thanks."_

"_Can you do something for Buckbeak though?"_

"_I'm trying, really. I've been reviewing some cases like you have. Henry is going through old law books with our family attorney Peter, in the hopes of finding some ancient law that can help. But other than that… I was not there. It won't make enough difference. If I have to throw my reputation on table… Those are Malfoy's goons. I don't stand a chance, and I don't think that Hagrid, with all good arguments in the world, would either._"

Harry sighed. _"Thanks to him, too._"

"_Lara's here, too. She's helping me with reading up. She says hi."_

Harry smiled a bit. Typically Jane, saying something like this to cheer him up. _"Thanks. Say hi back. I'll go to bed then._"

They wished each other goodnight.

* * *

The following weeks were a madhouse. Quidditch final came and passed in a daze – despite the dirty techniques Slytherin used, they won for the first time. They all celebrated, but it didn't last long. Exams came and went. The only highlight of that – in both Harry's and Ron's opinion – was when Hermione punched Malfoy. The day of the appeal neared. Jane, Henry, Lara, Ron and Harry all worked as much as they could on that, between work and exams. Despite her workload, Hermione managed to do some work for that, too; though it was Ron who did the most.

Despite their best attempts, on the morning of their last exam (Divination for Ron, Muggle studies for Hermione and Arithmancy for Harry, since there had been an overlap for him), came the note they had all feared: Hagrid and Buckbeak had lost the appeal. Execution was at sundown, and despite the danger, Harry felt they all needed to be there for their friend, and said as much. They agreed, and Hermione recovered the Invisibility cloak. And so, they found themselves on Hagrid's doorstep.

Harry knocked. "Let us in please, Hagrid. We're under the cloak.", he whispered when Hagrid opened the door.

Ignoring his protests, they went in. Hagrid seemed to accept what would be happening soon.

"It's all me own fault…- "

"Couldn't Dumbledore do something?", Ron asked.

"He tried. And so did you, though I wonder where you got all those facts from…"

Harry felt Ron's eyes on him, and sighed. He assumed that Ron had an idea Jane was involved. It had never been his intention to keep these many secrets. The problem with secrets is, the more people know of them, the bigger the chance of someone saying too much. It wasn't like he didn't trust Ron, or Hermione for that matter; he felt the risk was too big and the consequences-.

At that point, Hermione screamed. "Ron, look it's Scabbers!"

And indeed, as she turned the milk jug upside down, the rat came tumbling out.

Harry looked at Hagrid, who had gone pale, and followed his gaze. The executioners were coming.

"Get out through the back door.", Hagrid urged them on.

Despite their protests, they had to leave him there, alone.

They tried to make their way to the castle, but Scabbers didn't stay still. And then-

A dull thus as an axe came down, and howling in the air, howling he recognised as-

"Hagrid!", Harry whispered shocked. Part of him was thinking about turning around, but he couldn't, it would only cause Hagrid more problems…

Hermione eyed him, shock in her eyes. "At least Dumbledore is there…", she said, while looking back to the cabin, too.

At that moment, Scabbers escaped. They took of the cloak and ran after Ron, who was chasing Scabbers. Just as they reached Ron, Harry heard a noise… Was it… Paws?

And then a dog knocked into him, knocking out the air out of his lungs. The dog skidded on, grabbed a hold of Ron and dragged him of.

"Come on!", he yelled at Hermione, gesturing for the direction the dog had gone.

"We need go back to the castle, warn someone- "

"It's just a dog, 'Mione! It can seriously maim Ron, but not the three of us, come on!", he exclaimed, running forwards-

WHAM. The air was knocked out of him once more. He looked up and saw the Whomping Willow. They tried to dodge the branches like mad, but they couldn't get closer. Then Crookshanks snuck between the branches of the tree and put his paws on a knob. The tree froze.

Catching Hermione's gaze, he said: "Your cat hangs out with that dog from time to time. Come on."

She nodded, and they went in the tunnel. It ended in what looked like a house, probably in Hogsmeade, Harry thought. The place looked like it had been a chewing toy to something rather big and violent, and he hoped it wasn't home.

"Are we in the Shrieking Shack?", he whispered to Hermione. She nodded. "Ghosts didn't do this.", he said, gesturing to the environment. The traces in the dust went up, and so did they. They looked through the only open door.

"Ron!", Hermione said, relief evident in her voice. She dashed into the room, with Harry on her heels. He took one look at Ron's leg, and noticed it was broken. The bones stood at an awkward angle, though neither piece had pierced the skin. Ron didn't look like there was a massive bleeding going on there, either. He would have to find some kind of splint…

Ron interrupted his thoughts. "It's a trap. He's here…"

He didn't need Ron's confirmation that Black was an Animagus, and hopefully for the ministry, an unregistered one. He whirled around, and saw him standing, in the corner of the room, with Ron's wand. Moody would've a lot to say on this, he thought. Then he looked at Black again, and thought there were more urgent issues to deal with.

"Expelliarmus!", the man said calmly, catching their wands.

"Brave of you, to come rescue your friend.", he said.

"Brave, or stupid. I'm told it's a thin line.", he said, focussing on his emotions. If he got upset enough, maybe Jane would notice and sent a rescue team…

"Your father would've done the same.", the man continued, like nothing happened.

Time to try his luck. "Unfortunately, I don't know that. I never had much time with him.", he said in a harsh tone.

Something flickered in Black's eyes.

"Don't worry. Only one person will die tonight…", Black said, trailing of, raising his wand. But his aim seemed a little of… Or was he pointing it to… Ron?

Ron stood up from the bed he was lying on, holding on to Harry for support. "If you want to kill Harry, you will have to kill us, too!", he said, swaying a little.

Something flickered in Black's eyes again. But he was distracted, and Harry saw an opportunity, launching himself on Black. Most pureblood wizards were not trained in Muggle combat, and Black was not an exception. Hermione and Ron joined him in his fight, and Harry got a hold of their wands.

"Move!", he yelled at them, pointing the wands from a distance. He wondered what to do next. If he brought Black to the castle, he would never be able to ask his questions. Not to mention the Dementors would find them, and since they had a particular fondness of him, he wasn't enjoying the idea. But the choice was made for him, since he heard something, and someone came bursting through the door-

"Expelliarmus!", and for the second time this evening, Harry was disarmed. He met Lupins eyes, followed them to Black, on the ground.

"Where is he, Sirius?", professor Lupin asked.

Black pointed to Ron. So, he had been right, Harry thought, Black had really aimed for Ron. But that didn't make any sense…

"Was it always him, and you didn't tell me that?", he asked. Black nodded. Harry had no clue what was going on, but he saw Lupin helping Black up. And apparently, Hermione lost it.

"You...! You- I hid the truth from everyone!", she screamed.

"Hermione…", Lupin started, stepping closer.

"Stay away from Harry! He wants you dead, he's been helping Black all this time, he's a werewolf!", she yelled.

"Hermione", Harry interrupted, "if he wanted me dead, how about an 'accident' during my private lessons? Would've been far more convenient." Something in Lupin's face twitched. "And I knew that."

"What?", professor Lupin blurted out.

"It's not hard to figure out. I knew all along since we met – I remembered. But Hermione… found out after Snape's essay, didn't you?" She nodded. "Thought so. Was his intention, I believe.", he said.

His eyes flashed back to Lupin and Black. Then, he asked the question that had been on his mind for an entire year. "What happened that Halloween night, Mr. Black?"

They all seemed surprised, though Hermione had a look of realisation over her soon enough – she probably found out he was trying to buy time, to be able to contact Jane.

"I went to their house… I found their bodies. I wasn't the Secret keeper, Peter was…", Black stared of in the distance. "But enough of that! It's time for murder!", launching himself. But again, his aim seemed of…

Lupin intervened. "We need to explain! We owe that to Harry!" Black subsided.

Ron wanted to intervene, but Harry gestured for silence.

"I was bitten when I was young. For obvious reasons, I thought I would never be able to go to Hogwarts. But I was… And then, for the first time, I had friends… Sirius, your father and Peter Pettigrew. They found out, of course. I thought they would leave me behind and live on, but they didn't. They stayed at my side… And when their human forms couldn't… they became Animagi. In their fifth year, they managed it. They became unregistered Animagi… It was not long before we left my safe harbour, as Sirius and James were such large animals, they could control me."

"That was a risk- ", Hermione said.

"But it shouldn't be possible. Someone should have monitored him.", Harry replied. "Why is Snape so hateful to you?"

"The four of us… Played a trick on him. He nearly died, but your father pulled him back. Sirius told him how he could get into the tunnel-."

"But what was at the end of it?", Ron asked curiously.

"Professor Lupin, in wolf form.", Harry replied. "Perfect security. No one here, and even if he escaped, he still had to get into the castle, giving the teachers the time to react." **

Professor Lupin nodded.

"That's the problem between you and professor Snape?", he asked, a little curious. Okay, the end result could've been devastating, but he had the sinking feeling the incident didn't stand on his own.

"Indeed.", a familiar voice sneered. Throwing of the Invisibility cloak, there stood professor Snape. And the look on his face predicted nothing good.

"Found out of bounds, Potter.", he said. "The Dementors would love the fact they are getting two for the price of one!"

"Professor- ", Hermione began.

"Keep your foolish, arrogant mouth shut for once, girl!", he screeched. His eyes were bulging.

"Severus- ", Lupin started, but before he was able to say more, he was incarcerated on the floor. Snape pointed his wand at Black, and reckoned him to move.

"Stop.", Harry said, standing in the doorway.

"Move Potter!", the professor screamed. He truly looked mad in every sense of the word. He came approaching, his wand now pointed at Harry – and Harry just reacted.

"Expelliarmus!", he bellowed. But he was not the only one, Ron and Hermione had done the same on the exact same time. Snape was thrown across the room and stayed on the floor, unconscious.

"Shouldn't have done that", Black said, while releasing professor Lupin.

"If everything you say is true… You think that Scabbers is Peter Pettigrew.", Harry concluded fast. "Why?", he spoke, over Ron's protests.

Black reached inside his robes, and pulled the newspaper out. Harry recognised the article Ron had sent him, the one about them winning the lottery. "His paw, he cut it off before he dived into the sewers."

Harry nodded. "There's no prove.", he said pensively. He stopped trying to reach Jane. They were here for over half an hour. For some reason, she wasn't close enough to sense his emotions.

Lupin stepped up. "We can prove it. If we can take the rat, we can force him to take his true identity."

Harry looked at Ron, gesturing for him to respond to that. It was his pet, after all. "And what if he isn't", Ron asked.

"No harm will come to him _then_.", Lupin replied. Harry looked at him with interest. There was a little too much stress on then, for his liking.

And so, it happened. Scabbers seemed to grow, until there was a man on the floor. He still looked like a rat to Harry, with watery eyes, that flashed to the door. Harry hardly listened to him grovelling after he admitted his role in the murder of Harry's parents. He wasn't moved when Pettigrew pleaded for his life. But as they raised their wants, he couldn't stand it. His father's friends…

"No! You, my father's friends, shouldn't become murderers for this grovelling piece of shit."

They looked at each other. "Turn him in with the Dementors. They deserve each other."

They nodded. And so, they left. Sirius told him about being his Godfather and invited him to stay with him. He had never wanted something this badly…

And then it all went wrong.

He realised their mistake as soon as they excited the tunnel. He dashed forward, ignoring Sirius's warning… For the moon had just risen to its highest point. Lupin was transforming, and he wasn't save…

He reached Ron the second Lupin's transformation was complete. He knocked into Ron, pushing him aside. Then Sirius came to stand between them, in dog form, urging Lupin away, fighting. Harry turned, his instincts telling him to be on the lookout, and he was right, Pettigrew had snatched up Lupin's wand. He hexed Ron with some spell he didn't recognise.

"Expelliarmus!", he shouted. The spell was thrown around a lot, this night, he thought. The wand flew wide, but Pettigrew transformed, making his full-body bind fly wide.

He whirled around. Hermione came running towards Ron, Snape was floating in the air unconscious; Remus had taken off to the Forest.

"Pettigrew escaped!", he yelled at Sirius, who barked and ran off.

Dropping to his knees next to Hermione, he asked: "How is he?"

Hermione just shook her head. "I don't know what he was hit with, but he seems 'only' knocked out.", she replied, but he noticed she still looked concerned.

His blood froze, as he heard barking. They looked at each other. "Go! Get help!", he shouted, running towards the barking. But then it suddenly stopped. Don't be too late, he begged silently. It couldn't be, not so soon after he'd found him…

He heard something behind him and whirled around, wand drawn.

"Hermione!", he hissed, startling her.

"Don't even start!", she whispered back fiercely, Ron flying behind her. "I'm coming with you. For all you know Pettigrew is waiting at the front door! Strength in numbers!"

Harry didn't respond, he just started running again, running as fast as he could-.

At first, he didn't notice the cold. Later, he would think he was already numb with shock. So much had happened… When he ran to the lakeshore, were his godfather was lying, pleading, he couldn't even feel more than a little shock when he recognised the Dementors. Hundreds of them…

Standing fiercely beside his godfather, he yelled at Hermione: "think of the happiest thing you can remember and say 'Expecto Patronum'!"

And she tried. Dear God, she gave everything she had, along with his feeble attempts. But it wasn't enough. Sirius succumbed first, rolling flat on his back. Hermione collapsed a little later, followed by Ron as her spell was cancelled.

"Expecto Patronum.", he mumbled feebly. He could see nothing but fog, hear nothing but the shouting of his parents and the laughing of one Lord Voldemort. "Expecto Patronum." He kept repeating it, because it was the only hope he had. No one would be running to their aid. Silvery vapor was all he managed to produce…

The Dementor focussed on him again, its rotten hands closing around his neck…

"Expecto Patronum.", he mumbled feebly, grabbing hold of Sirius' arm. They would not get him. THEY WOULD NOT GET HIM! He thought of all the people in his life, who would grieve if he died here. Jane, Henry, Lara, Sirius, Ron, Hermione. But so many others cared for him, too. And as it was, he could picture their faces suddenly way more clear.

"EXPECTO PATRONUM!", he shouted, taking the Dementor by surprise. And he saw a silvery animal coming out of his wand, driving the Dementors back. All of a sudden, it was warm again. Still on his knees, he forced his head up, through his light-headedness. Before him stood a beautiful stag.

"Prongs…", he whispered, as the animal vanished.

Groaning, pushing back the darkness in his vision momentarily through sheer will power, he grabbed a hold of Ron, Hermione and Sirius. He plucked something from his pocket and whispered: "emergency." It was a good thing Jane insisted on him having one, all the time, he thought vaguely. As he felt the tug behind his navel, darkness closed around him.

* * *

Jane was working in the embassy late that night. Since Patrick, who held the position before her, was giving her more and more work to do, and he was out tonight, she'd started working late. She was jerked back from her thoughts when the wards flared. Jumping on her feed, she looked at Jean.

"Someone came in through the wards. Portkey.", she said curtly.

They ran down the stairs, more Aurors and Hitwizards coming to them, until there was a group of twelve. They burst into the atrium-

And skidded to a halt. There were four unconscious people lying there.

"Harry.", she said, bending down. Feeling for a pulse, relieved at finding one, she noticed his skin was unusually cold and clam.

"Madame.", Jean said warningly.

She looked up. Two of the others she recognised as Hermione and Ron, and the third-

"Sirius Black.", she whispered. Then she sprang into action. "You!", she said to the youngest Auror, only arriving this very night, "go to the Hospital Wing, tell the Healers to come up here. Four unconscious people, signs of exposure to Dementors." He nodded. "Run.", she added when he didn't seem to budge.

She focussed on Ron. His leg had obviously been broken, and was in some kind of splint. She put her hands on it, and tried to focus. Banishing all other thoughts and worries from her head, she allowed energy to flow. With a sickening crack, the leg was healed. She worked on cancelling a charm next. It was difficult, as she had no idea what curse it was. But she managed. When she came back to herself, she saw Henry looking at her. He was working on Harry, waving his wand and muttering. The others were already floating to the Hospital Wing, guided by their respective Healers.

As another Healer took over Ron, she looked at him questioningly.

"Magical exhaustion. But nowhere near as bad as in first year. He'll be good to go as soon as he wakes, no worries."

She sighed. "I'm not sure about that… I want to know what happened."

Henry smiled a little at that. "No surprise there."

After being assured everyone would be fine and there was nothing seriously wrong with either of them, she went up to were Black was held. They held him on the upper floor, in their most heavily warded room. As she entered it, he was still unconscious. She took a moment to look at him, sliding down the furthest wall. He had changed so much since the last pictures she had seen… Jane wondered what had done that. Azkaban? The death of his friends? She wanted to know what had happened that night, but at the same time, she wondered if she was projecting herself on the man. They both had it hard after their loved ones had died. Was she projecting her own innocence on him? She'd find out soon enough.

Not even three hours after they had arrived, he stirred. She waited, and stood stiffly. She had not moved since she had entered the room, so she probably had made a sound. He was suddenly wide awake. Jane looked at the Healer questioningly, who nodded. She nodded back – he was all right and she could talk to him, but she should be careful. The Healer left the room.

"Welcome back.", she said. And realised she had failed already, because she had startled him. In her black robes, standing still in a dark corner, he probably hadn't noticed her. She smiled apologetically.

"Are they all right?", he asked in a strange tone. Was it anxiety? "Are Harry and the others safe?"

She eyed him carefully. "Harry and the others are safe and being checked over by a Healer, but there's no lasting damage."

He looked relieved. "Eat your chocolate, mister Black; we are going to have a little chat."

Jane smiled reassuringly while he reached for the chocolate surprisedly.

"Do you know where you are, mister Black?" He shook his head. "Do you know who I am?", she asked calmly.

"No. But I want to thank you- "

"Don't thank me yet.", she replied, her smile faltering a bit. "I'm Jane Davidson, the current ambassador for Magical France in Great Britain. You are currently residing in the embassy's holding cell. You arrived here unconscious, in the presence of…", picking up a parchment, "Harry James Potter, Ronald Virus Weasley and Hermione Jean Granger. There's evidence they are exposed to Dementor's, and Ronald's leg was broken." He said nothing, and she sighed. Conjuring a chair, she seated herself and crossed her legs, leaning back until she was comfortable. "You have one chance to explain yourself. I will not tolerate lying."

He looked even more surprised. Five minutes of silence passed, and she nearly thought he wouldn't say anything. "I'm innocent.", he started hesitantly.

But they were interrupted when the door burst open, and there was Harry. She raised her eyebrows in question. "He's here.", he said, anxiousness evident in his voice.

Jane closed her eyes. This, she thought, was the worst-case scenario.

Then, she rose from the chair. "What do you need?", she questioned, eying Harry as he spoke.

"Ten minutes.", he replied. She nodded, and made to leave the room, but his voice stopped her. "Jane- "

"Don't.", she replied, he eyes glued on the door. "I can't guarantee anything.", she continued. She felt Sirius Black's eyes on her. "Be careful and do what you have to do."

His eyes widened in surprise, but she didn't notice. While she went down to the atrium, at a much slower pace than last time, Jane sighed. She was really not ready for this… She really couldn't do this, a man's life depended on her capabilities as a diplomat! Now more than ever she wished Patrick was here. She closed her eyes. He was not here, and the man upstairs was depending on her, she thought. Get your shit together, she commanded herself, while straightening her shoulders. Jane thought back to him, and to Harry. She wondered if she had done well. She had basically encouraged him to break out a prisoner, and though it was the right thing to do, as she truly believed him when he said he was innocent, the risks-

"Jane!", minister Fudge said, as she rounded a corner and walked through the double doors.

Only just managing to keep a straight face, she feigned surprise. "Prime minister Fudge! I could not believe my ears when I heard you were here. Such an _unexpected_ pleasure." Unfortunately, he didn't seem to realise she emphasized _unexpected_, nor why she had done so. Suppressing a sigh, she continued. "What can we do for you tonight?"

"An awful business, dear, we need to check your territory- ", he stated, spinning his bowler so fast it became a blur.

"Perhaps", she said delicately, "this matter is best discussed in my office. If you'd follow me?"

"Well, we need to move fast. Delicate business, dear.", he said, attempting – and failing – a reassuring smile.

"I cannot grand you permission to search these grounds if I don't know why.", Jane retorted. "Please, walk with me?" She let out a breath and exchanged a glance with Jean when the minister finally was moving. He nodded reassuringly – there was no one on the terrain without her knowing so, they all were in here. That's something, she thought.

"Have a seat, Prime Minister.", she said, gesturing to a seat across her bureau. Jean handed her a parchment, and she frowned while reading the message. "There are forty Aurors in the waiting room downstairs, Prime Minister. Why is that? I might add, if we hadn't been allies for so long, this might be considered an … invasion of sorts."

"O no, no no we do not wish to breach your integrity, my dear.", he replied, smiling. She resisted the urge to tell him the correct form of address was not 'dear', no matter how young she was. "We eh… We come from Hogwarts, and I was informed that Sirius Black had been sighted there."

She waited, but he seemed to only spin his bowler. "If he was seen at Hogwarts, then why are you here, sir?", she prodded, suspecting she knew the answer.

"There was evidence a Portkey had been activated. So, we checked, and the only registered Portkeys that qualify, are coming down here."

She nodded. "So, you want to conduct a search.", she concluded. When he nodded, she continued. "We have not asked for your help, Prime Minister. You insisted in the beginning of the school year I would not need any more protection than I had."

"Well, we have evidence he is here- "

She forced another smile. "We are flattered by your concern, Prime Minister. But I must insist, there is no need to offer your man. I have my own- "

"We are here anyways.", he retorted.

"And again, we appreciate your concern. On behalf of my nation, I thank you. But surely, you realise this is delicate?"

"We intend no harm, dear. We only wish to ensure everyone's safety."

"Then whose prisoner will he be, should he be found on this premises?", Jane questioned, counting the minutes in her head.

Prime Minister Fudge frowned. "Well, he's British."

"No one is denying that. But you seem to forget that, technically, this is French ground."

He reminded her forcefully of a goldfish, as he sat there happing for air. "But surely, you'll understand if my men find him- "

"But surely, you'll understand, French ground is French ground. Anything or anyone found on these grounds, belongs initially to the French government. Standard procedure."

Fudge chewed on that for a while. "But as good allies and friends, there must be a way around that?"

Jane frowned. While she was stalling, it seemed like Fudge was making haste. That was not unusual, but he seemed a little desperate now. It made her wondering if he was hiding something. A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts. One of the Aurors she had placed before Black's door came in with a piece of folded parchment. Unfolding it carefully, she read it and thought for a while.

"Are you sure about this, Matti?", she asked the young, tall girl. She nodded. "Thank you. Return to your post, please."

She lowered herself in her seat again, after springing up when she had heard the knocking.

"Sirius Black was found unconscious here in the atrium. He woke up shortly before you arrived."

"Well, that's splendid! I'll send call the Dementors for the Kiss- "

"No Dementor will ever cross this threshold.", she retorted curtly.

"Well, then we'll just bring him to the Ministry- "

"It seems we have another problem, Prime Minister. He has asked for asylum."

Again, she was forcefully reminded of a goldfish. "I request you hand him over.", he stated, trying and failing a firm voice.

She sighed. "I cannot do that, until this case has been resolved. He claims to fear unlawful imprisonment. His claim needs to be investigated before we can hand him over." It was a really smart idea, she reflected. They could buy some time by asking for the paperwork, allowing the fleeing Sirius to run even further. "You can speed up the process by handing over the documents concerning his trial." If her eyes did not deceive her, Fudge suddenly seemed rather anxious.

He forced a smile. They seemed to do that a lot, as of lately, she noted. "I'm sure, as such good allies, we can evade such formalities?"

A muscle sprang in her face. "Unfortunately," not that she regretted anything, "that's not possible. The law is the law."

"But of course, we can … help each other?"

Was he bribing her, she wondered? "I do hope, Prime Minister, said paperwork is in order?", she replied in an icy tone. Guilt flashed over his face. "You're not telling me you locked up a man in a prison, forcing him to relive his worst memories over and over again, without giving him the chance to defend himself first?!"

The look on his face said it all. "No, of course not.", he tried.

"You have two weeks to deliver us the documents.", she said stonily.

"I'll simply contact my friend the Prime Minister of France!", he shouted, finally losing his temper.

Standing up, she replied: "Such is your right. But I'm asking you, unless there's something else, to leave these grounds. Take your men with you."

Fudge stormed out, smashing the door closed behind him, and she sighed. "Treaty!", she called. The elf appeared. "Tell the French Prime Minister and the Minister of Foreign Affairs I need to see both of them or one of them, whatever is first possible. Tell them it's urgent." The elf nodded and disappeared. "Jean, see to it they indeed leave these grounds. I want no one lingering. No man of the Prime Minister is to be on these grounds, until I declare they are welcome again. Make sure all of them leave, and no one comes back without me being informed." He nodded and left.

Jane sighed herself. Those ministers wouldn't be happy she woke them in the middle of the night. But they needed to be prepared. Speaking about preparing, she needed to talk with Sirius Black.

As she had expected, when she reached the upper floor where they were holding him, and she entered his room, Harry was still there, sitting on the bedside. They looked up questioningly.

"It worked. Fudge left.", she said tiredly, inelegantly falling on a chair. She suddenly felt all the nights where they had researched for Buckbeak's case, plus this sleepless night. Jane resisted the urge to yawn.

Harry just nodded. "Thank you.", Sirius Black said. She nodded.

"What really happened that night?", she asked softly.

"Peter Pettigrew was the Secret Keeper. I went to check on him, and he was just gone. No signs of a fight. I didn't like it, so I went to the Potter's house.", Sirius trailed of.

"What about when you found him?"

"We're all unregistered Animagi. He yelled at me, saying I had betrayed James and Lily. He cut off his own finger, blew up the street and disappeared in the sewer."

Jane looked up to Harry. "I trust you have a plan."

"Yes. In theory, you just requested the paperwork considering the trial?", he asked. She nodded. "There was no trial.", he stated.

She sighed and rubbed her eyes tiredly. "Thought so."

"So, they are going to be unable to provide these documents."

"And he can walk free.", she said, nodding.

"We intend to request a trial. To clear his name."

She pondered that question. "It's unusual, but you have that right, yes. But you have to realise, they can ask you to take Veritaserum."

Sirius nodded. "Harry said as much."

"They will probably ask me to testify. So, don't tell me your plan. But you can ask Peter – our family lawyer - to be your lawyer."

"I'll help with strategy.", Harry said.

Jane nodded. The following news would not be received well, she thought. "I know you are innocent, but officially, I don't know all that. That means I need to act accordingly. As soon as the Healers declare you good to go – probably tomorrow – we'll transfer you to a holding cell. Officially, you are a murderer. I need to protect the public from you, though I think it's more the other way around."

"You think Fudge is going to break him out?", Harry asked curiously.

"No, but I see Malfoy doing it, for say. If Sirius Black is cleared, he'll lose a lot of money and his seat on the Wizengamot. Secondly, he has no reason to even keep you alive. This place is a fort, which means you'll be most vulnerable in transport. Which means I'm going to move you, before they expect you to be moved."

He appeared to be hyperventilating, she only noticed now. Harry grabbed his arm. "Sirius! Breathe. Look at me, breath. It's going to be alright."

After a few minutes, Sirius sighed. "Yes, I can handle a few months of Dementors.", he said, trying to pull a brave face.

She snorted. "Barbaric habit. We don't do that. The place will be heavily warded, and you'll likely not get a walk but a beautiful orange overall, but that's it. Only danger is to your eyes for all the orange." And to your mental health for being locked up so long, she amended mentally. "There'll even be visitors, and if we can get Harry an official role, he can visit. Though someone is going to be in the room with you – Omphf.", she groaned when he gave her a hug. A grinning Harry jumped on top of them, and they fell on the floor, laughing.

"Thanks.", they said in unison.

"You're welcome.", she said sincerely, smiling.

With a pang, Treaty appeared. "They are ready, milady."

"Right. Harry, get some rest. You haven't slept. Sirius, you too. I'll likely move you at two in the afternoon, since that is an unusual time. Mostly it's one in the afternoon or eight before noon. I'll go inform my boss." She nodded to Treaty and they Apparated out.

She told Treaty to wait in the waiting room, and knocked.

"Come in.", the Prime Minister said.

She came in through the huge double doors. The office of the Prime Minister Dubois had huge windows, and although it was still night-time, light came through. The Prime Minister was a dark figure against the window.

"Jane!", she exclaimed. "Are you alright? Do you need a Healer?"

She probably looked worse than she had hoped, she thought. "No, I'm fine. Just tired."

"We thought… We thought the embassy had fallen.", she Mrs. Dubois said.

"Oh, no. No, I've had a… problem with Prime Minister Fudge."

"Sit down and tell us everything.", she replied.

As she sat down facing the enormous desk, she noticed the Minister of Foreign Affairs from the corner of her eyes. Mr. Boucher seemed to be studying her carefully.

"Earlier today, Harry used his Portkey to the atrium of the embassy. He took Hermione Granger and Ronald Weasley with him… And Sirius Black. I had them looked over by Healers, and then I had Sirius Black locked up in our most warded room. He told me he was innocent, but we were then interrupted by Prime Minister Fudge. He insisted on seeing me. He knew Mr. Black was with us, and asked permission to search the grounds. I declined. In that meeting, I got word that Mr. Black was asking for asylum, on the grounds of fearing unlawful imprisonment. I told the PM as much, he wanted me to hand over Black anyway. I declined again, asked him for the legal documents. He tried to go around that, I think he tried to bribe me, too. He stormed out, saying he would take the matter to you."

Her own PM frowned. "Why was he so resistant with the legal documents?"

"According to Mr. Black, there was no trial. I've been investigating the case, as you know, and I think there was indeed no trial."

Dubois closed her eyes. "So, what now?"

"I don't think we have another choice then to hold him. I've been talking to his attorney, and he said they are probably going to ask for a trial."

"Does he know about the Veritaserum?", Boucher asked.

"Yes. He's willing to take it."

"He'll have to go with the Ministry of Justice for that."

A polite knock on the door interrupted them. "Come in.", the PM called again.

Her secretary poked her head around the corner. "Sorry for the intrusion, but Prime Minister Fudge arrived."

"Take that door. You can listen in. Come when I call you.", the PM said, looking at Jane. She nodded, and disappeared. Jane didn't have to wait long.

"Prime Minister Fudge! Such an _unexpected _pleasure.", Dubois said. Again, he didn't seem to get the meaning.

"Prime Minister Dubois.", he replied. Though it sounded more like 'Dju-bois'. Jane shook her head silently. It was difficult to pronounce for English people. Also, he seemed not to notice Minister Boucher.

"How can I help you, _this_ early in the morning?"

"Well, I had a… problem with your ambassador.", he replied.

"Oh? And what would that be?", Dubois asked, a warning undertone in her voice.

"She disrespected me, didn't accept my help and refused to cooperate with the justice system.", he said. He was trying for the firm voice again, she noted.

"How inconvenient. This is a very serious matter."

"I'm glad you agree, madame.", Fudge started to say.

"Especially since my ambassador has reported something entirely different.", Dubois continued, a hard edge in her voice. "Come in, Jane!"

She entered the room. Fudge looked dumbfounded.

"Prime Minister Fudge, it appears the you have a problem. Unless you can guarantee me, the documents will be in order, at the requested time?", her PM asked.

"Well… They seem to be… misplaced.", he replied carefully, not meeting anyone's eye.

"I have a brilliant solution. It's called a Summoning charm. I'm sure at least one person at your ministry is capable of that.", Dubois said sarcastically.

"It's not that simple- "

"Mister Fudge, you have offended my ambassador and lied to my face and that of my Minister of Foreign Affairs. One more lie, and you're out of this office."

He shut his mouth. "The deadline stands. You're wasting your time.", Dubois said.

He nodded curtly and marched out of the room. Or at least he tried to make it look like that. But the voice of the French PM stopped him once again.

"Oh, and one last thing.", Prime Minister Dubois waited until he had turned around. "Do not lie to me again, ever."

As soon as he left, Jane said: "I've got to go back. Now he knows I'm here… I'll arrange the transport, leaving at 2 p.m."

The Minister of Foreign Affairs shook his head. "The Ministry of Justice will Portkey someone over to collect him. That's safer."

She nodded her thanks and left.

* * *

Back in the embassy she walked straight into Harry, informing him of the meeting.

"How is Sirius?", she asked when she was done recounting.

"Alright. Good to go.", he looked sad at that.

"How did you find him anyway?", she asked him.

"He found us when we were getting back from Hagrid's.", he replied, looking sober.

"Based on the look on your face, I trust you haven't heard."

"Heard what?", he asked, frowning.

"Henry fount out that, because you were present, too and because you were working with him before the incident, you have a say, too. Your written statement, taken by Peter, was enough. I know it was only meant for us, so that we knew what kind of similar cases we were looking for, but I thought you wouldn't mind."

He appeared speechless. "But I heard them doing it- "

"The executioner slashed the enclosure the animal was residing it. That's what you've probably heard."

They whirled around, only to see-

"Patrick! You're back!", she exclaimed happily.

"Well yes, Hagrid asked me to drink a glass, and I thought nothing exciting would happen. But when I went inside, I heard Snape had survived an encounter with Black. Then I heard you lot were missing"

"Ah, shit.", Jane said.

"Eh… How do we solve that?", Harry wondered aloud.

Her mind whirled around. "Lupin. You didn't dare crossing the terrain with a werewolf around, so you went up a tree. You stayed there all night.", Patrick supplied.

They exchanged a glance. "Sounds brilliant. How about him?"

"I was thinking, we can spread the rumour he only pretended to be helping Sirius, in order to be able to overpower him and let you escape.", Jane said.

"Well, our excuse is settled then. So, I have to leave before- "

She shook her head. "Just say you fell asleep in that tree and didn't wake until next afternoon."

"And Lupin- "

"Came looking for you.", she supplied.

"You're a genius.", Harry smiled tiredly.

"You missed a lot, Patrick.", she finally answered his question. "I'll fill you in."

* * *

* **A huge thank you to **_**mwinter1**_**, who rightfully pointed out to me that this was not clear last chapter, along with the fact Henry had not contributed anything to Buckbeak's case yet.**

**** Or at least, that's the best reason for not having a place in the castle, were he could be more easily monitored by a healer, that I can come up with. If you want to share your thoughts on the subject, let me know in a review!**

**I truly hate time-travelling. It's mind boggling at best. So, I worked around it. Hope you liked it!**

**I've realised the lines are not visible either, so I'm gonna try something else.**

**This is an even larger chapter, and I'm going to cut it off here. Next chapter will hopefully be up in July.**


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: Here I am again! I forgot to address some points, last chapter… I was kind of in a rush to get it out. So here it comes: remember when I said we had the last disturbing chapter? Well, given that I changed my mind about last chapter, this one might be disturbing to some readers. I'll put an alert up when we're going there. Time to let Jane find out about Harry's home life… Also, I'm debating for one moment in the near future, I'll put an alert up if we cross that bridge.**

**On to the chapter itself, and please know that you're very welcome to leave a review!**

* * *

**The following week flashed by for Jane.** Harry had informed her that Remus would quit as a DADA teacher, which left them both behind with a rather sour feeling. Sirius was still imprisoned; Fudge was not cooperating and was actively holding back information and Snape had outed Remus as a werewolf. It was Harry who came with an idea to solve one of these problems, and she instantly agreed. And that, she thought, was why she was sitting in the office of the embassy. Just then, her secretary knocked, showing Remus Lupin in.

"Mr. Lupin.", she said, standing and offering him a hand.

"Please, call me Remus, miss Davidson.", he replied, shaking her hand.

"Only if you call me Jane.", she replied amusedly. Remus smiled a little, nodding. "I imagine you are wondering why I called you here?", she asked. He nodded again. "Well… I'm offering you a job."

He looked up in surprise. "What kind of job?", he asked curiously.

"Teaching.", she replied.

He shook his head. "I imagine you've heard about me being a werewolf, I can't possibly. -"

She held up her hands to stop him. "Allow me to explain why that risk wouldn't be there." She waited until he nodded, albeit reluctantly. "I'm going to ask you to teach werewolf children." He opened his mouth to ask a bunch of questions. "Hear me out, please. In the last war, werewolves sided for a large part with Voldemort. Why? He promised them the world. He gave them hope, a purpose. He festered their feeling they would never be accepted as a part of wizards' world – but he did. It's as simple as that. If Voldemort returned today, they would side with him again. But what would happen if we could offer them something? That's what I want to do. I want to give the newly bitten children a home, a place where they can come and learn to cope. Where they can learn what 'normal' children learn, where they can play and be a child. Because except for one night in a month, they're all human. I would like to expand to the older werewolves once this is established, but that's not for anytime soon."

"The ministry will not approve.", Remus said, sadness in his voice.

"They did. I made them agree, albeit reluctantly." She didn't mention she had practically had to threaten Fudge. "They wanted in return that we list werewolves." She noticed how Remus frowned. "And I will. Encrypted, on a computer." Remus smiled a bit at that. "It's not my fault they can work with one for the life of them."

"What will be my role?", Remus asked.

"You teach the younger kids what they would learn if they went to primary school. You prepare them for Hogwarts. They – and you, for that matter – will be provided with Wolfsbane. The maximum capacity will be fifteen children. The grounds itself will be warded, so that no werewolf can cross borders in wolf form, allowing you to roam the forest without having to worry about nearby villages. Healers will be available the nights after full moon, and on call for all other days."

"The public will think we are conspiring against them.", Remus warned.

"Indeed. That's why I'll encourage the family members to come with the children. I'll have press come over, though I doubt the Rita Skeeter will show up. But foreign press… I don't want the magical world to remain hateful out of ignorance, and that is what is happening now."

She produced a contract. "Take your time to go over it. You can give me your answer at the end of the week."

He read it through. "Twenty galleons a month?! How are you financing this?"

"Harry.", she said simply. "It was his idea to ask you. Which reminds me…", she continued, rummaging through her desk. "Ah, here. He wrote a letter to you."

Remus looked at her. She smiled. "Any more questions?"

He shook his head. "You'll have my answer next week."

* * *

**A few busy weeks had passed after that.** Remus Lupin had accepted her offer, and they worked together to get their 'hotel' on its feet. There had been a ceremony with an official transition of the tittle of ambassador to her. She had to attend a few official gatherings after that. Meanwhile, Henry and Lara were busy planning a trip to Vietnam, which Jane had given them the year before as a birthday present for her sister.

"Are you ready?", she asked Lupin. He appeared a little stressed. She looked around, trying and failing to locate Harry, and frowned. She hadn't seen him all week… But then, Lupin nodded.

"All right, folks.", she called above the chatter. Jane let her eyes sweep through the room. Most children were older than thirteen, though there were a few exceptions. Most werewolves were laying low now Voldemort had disappeared. "I'm Jane Davidson. I'm the ambassador for magical France. I want you to know that you are here protected by the fact you are on French grounds. The French laws state that werewolves are equal to wizards, _as it should be_. We are on your side, at all times." She paused, swallowing. "You will be given Wolfsbane potion. You'll have company when you transform. Your injuries will be taken care of. We provide in all your needs. There are rooms upstairs, with one or more connections to guest rooms, dependant on how many people you've brought with you. During the day, there will be people around. They will not be there to watch you, but they will discipline if they see fit. You'll be given a chance to explain. We do not tolerate one thing, and that is deliberately harming another person here. If you're found doing that, we'll ask you to leave. Other disciplinary measures will be taken in agreement with your plus-one. You'll be provided meals on the times that are hanging on the board over there. Notifications will be posted there. You'll all have classes, dependant on your age you'll be divided in groups. The lessons will be given by professor Remus Lupin, here.", she gestured to the man, who came standing next to her, and smiled a bit.

"You'll be taught what is taught at Hogwarts, as you know since you had to select electives. We also teach you what you would learn at Muggle schools, for in case that's ever needed." She took a break, swallowed again, and continued. "The ministry has asked to keep record of who is here. Those will be kept in a computer, a muggle device that is not hard to command, if you have the know-how." She saw smiles, when they realised what she was doing. "Of note, French law officers can ask your identification, but unfortunately, I forgot to ask them. Meaning I've unfortunately no possibility to check if you're making up a name.", She said, though she made sure to not sound like she thought of that as unfortunate.

"Thank you for your faith. We'll not let you down.", she declared firmly, bowing to them. The latter surprised them. It was meant as a sign of respect, of trust; she was in vulnerable position, after all. But they surprised her, too; as they bowed back after a moment of stunned surprise, and she stepped down the podium. She and Lupin went to talk with the people who showed up.

Later that evening, when everyone had gone to bed, she made her way to him.

"You ready to stay and begin tomorrow, professor?", she asked.

"Of course.", he said, smiling. He frowned. "I had thought Harry would be here?"

"Ah yes, I thought, too." She saw him frowning concerned, but smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry, I'm sure there's a good explanation."

But privately, she thought it had been three weeks since she had last seen him, since it was the second week of July. She would pay them a visit.

* * *

**Jane had her private driver drive to Privet Drive, but stopped him before going around the corner.** No matter how much she hated it, rules were rules, and for her, one of these rules was using a car when a destination was over a certain distance. It limited the amount of people she had to bring with her. Thankfully, it was only Jean, because she took the car. She gestured for him to stay where he was at the beginning of the ramp. Taking a good look around and seeing no sign of Harry – and frowning at the sad state of the normally proud flowers – she rang the bell. She waited patiently, and finally; the door opened.

"Yes.", Vernon Dursley barked. Of course, she thought, it was a Saturday. She had started the 'hotel' – they had no name as of yet – yesterday, and that was on Friday evening. That way, even working parents could attend.

"Good afternoon, sir.", she started politely, smiling friendly. "I'm Jane Davidson and I was wondering if I could have a word with Harry Potter?"

Vernon Dursley paled, and looked around suspiciously, as if expecting his neighbours to be spying on them. She frowned; she could practically see him thinking fast. Alarm bells rung in her head. "He's not here.", Vernon replied after a solid five minutes, not meeting her eyes.

"Can I perhaps come inside to wait for him?", she asked, keeping the suspicion out her voice. "As an ambassador, my security team would not be very happy if I kept standing here…"

She saw him thinking for another five minutes. "Yes.", he replied begrudgingly.

She nodded to Jean. "Do you mind if he comes in, too?"

It was all too clear Vernon _did_ indeed mind, but he said nothing. Was that fear in his eyes? *

They both entered. "Come on in, the living room is there.", he said, pointing to a door.

They stood there for a while, awkwardly. After all, Vernon had not invited them to sit down.

"Do you expect him at a certain time, sir?", she asked politely, after a solid fifteen minutes of silence.

"No idea when the lad comes home nowadays, he listens to no one.", Vernon said, an angry note in her voice.

That was not how she knew him. She had the feeling something was really, really wrong.

They waited for another fifteen minutes. She glanced at the clock – nearly nine o'clock in the evening. She would expect a thirteen-year-old would have to be home by then, but neither Harry nor Dudley appeared to be there. Just as she thought that, she heard the front door slam. Vernon went to greet whoever was there, and getting bored a little, she let her eyes sweep through the room. Her eyes landed on a cupboard – a cupboard with fancy, new, shining locks on it. Slowly, she made her way towards it. The wood was darker at a certain place, and she touched it.

_**Warning of child abuse commences**_

"What are you doing there?!", an angry Petunia Dursley exclaimed. There was a lot of noise when Vernon and Dudley burst through the door. Jane turned around, slowly.

"She's here to visit the f- Harry."

"Why is there blood on your cupboard?", she asked slowly, showing the blood on her fingernails.

There was a pregnant pause. "I… Must have broken a nail when I hit my foot there earlier, don't you think, Vernon darling?", Petunia said, looking to her husband.

"Wh- Yes. Yes, indeed."

Dudley looked uninterested.

She nodded slowly, accepting the explanation.

"Do you know where he is?", she asked. Three people shook their head. She sighed. "You truly think I'm daft as hell, don't you? There are locks on the cupboard and blood on it, quite dry yet. What was in your cupboard?", she asked.

"Listen here, you.", Vernon said gruffly. "You can't come in and question us like that!"

They stared at each other, neither willing to be the first to avert their eyes. At that moment, a sound came from upstairs. Jane started to walk to the stairs.

"I want you to leave, now! I'll call the police!", Vernon shouted.

She turned around slowly. "You should. Perhaps you can explain them why there is blood on your stairs?" She pointed to a corner of the stairs, where a small bloodstain was visible. Jane didn't like the picture this was drawing…

Before she knew what happened, Vernon lunged at her, his hands wrapping around her throat. They wrestled, she struggled for air. Vaguely, in the background, she could hear Dudley cheering his dad on and Jean warning to let go of her, twice, thrice. Then-

WHAM. Jean had drawn his wand, and Vernon was thrown off her. She immediately stormed upstairs, burst through the door of the smaller bedroom. Closing her eyes and pressing her fingers as hard she could against them, because this had to be a hallucination, it couldn't be true… But it was. Harry was lying on the bed, unceremoniously dropped upon it. His legs were both broken, one bone was sticking out of his left leg. His left arm was broken, his jaw looked broken. There were lots of bruises and cuts, and his breathing was laboured – though that could very well be his injuries, not some lung condition. She dropped on her knees next to his bed, feeling for a pulse, letting out a sigh of relief when she found one.

Jean came bursting in.

"Call the driver, tell him to come in. I can't lift him on my own.", she said. Jean nodded.

She took her own cell phone. "Henry? I need you to prepare the medical team."

"What happened?", he asked sharply.

"I'm fine. Harry has – he has suffered major trauma. Multiple broken bones, happened not too long ago, but also not very recent – a day, two maybe."

She heard him exhale. When he replied, he was speaking like a Healer, not like a concerned parent.

"Okay, do you have a pulse?"

"Yes."

"Breathing?"

"Laboured. Nothing stuck in his throat, as far as I can see and feel."

"Any impact on his back or neck?"

"No idea.", she replied, frowning.

"Is there an ironing board in the neighbourhood?"

"Eh- Yes.", she said, stepping into a different room.

"Put him on it. Try to move his back and neck as few as possible, but you need to be quick. He needs help soon."

She and her driver went to work.

"Done. We're on our way down and then to you."

"We'll be waiting."

She nodded and hung up. As they walked through the front door, the neighbours were coming out of their houses. Jane looked to Jean. "Make sure they don't get out.", she said softly. "The police are on their way, so try not to intervene. I know you have jurisdiction to protect me, but outside of that, I don't think you can do much."

He nodded in understanding, closing the door to the backseats of the car behind them. And then they were on their way, driving as fast as they could. And in the darkness of the car, as she felt Harry slipping away, a tear rolled out of her eye.

* * *

**Jane liked to think of herself as not one prone to tears**. She had barely cried for her parents' death when it just happened – the Death Eaters who kept her didn't like 'crying babies'. She had barely cried when they were looking for her sister and she had lost everything, in a foreign country. In all those years before Harry left for Hogwarts, or after it, she had not cried.

This was different. This was her friend, her first ever friend, slowly dying, alone in his room. Her friend, left alone by uncaring relatives. It has her wondering how often something like this had happened, and she hadn't noticed. He was in surgery now, and there was nothing she could do. She knew some emergency medicine, but this was complex surgery. As she was pacing in the waiting room, while he was in surgery, she dried her tears. She had to know why. She had to know what happened. Not out of some morbid form of curiosity, but because Harry would need her after this, and she would only know what to do if she knew what happened.

And so, she had asked her driver to drive her to _that place_, as she had begun to call it, again. She tried not to look at the bloodstains in the car, tried to drive out the slow moaning Harry involuntarily had produced on their way to her house. And now, as she stood before the house, she wondered if she had made the right decision. Was not knowing worse than knowing a horrible truth? She didn't know. And while she stood there, making up her mind, Jean approached her.

"They've been taken away to the police station. I've given them Henry's office number to keep in touch with him, and they'll wat Harry's statement."

She nodded. None of this was unexpected, after all. She gestured to the crowd of neighbours to her left. "Did they know?"

"I've overheard the interrogations of the police. None of them cared, but interestingly, quite a few mentioned bars on the window of Harry's room."

"Bars?"

"They said it was for burglars."

"Apart from the fact there has been no break-in since I've come to live here, and probably not before that, either. So why were they here?"

"No idea. The bars were just gone one day. Oh, and one miss Arabella Figg's not home. Apparently, she went to visit her cousin." **

She mumbled something incoherently at that.

"Madame?", he asked quietly. She looked at him and nodded for him to go on. "Are you sure you want to do this? According to the police, it's not pretty."

She looked at the house, then closed her eyes. "Yes, I'm sure."

Slowly, she made her way to the door. She heard Jean introduce her, and the senior investigator, who turned out to be the same one who had investigated the death of her foster mother – Tom - granted her permission to walk around, if she didn't touch anything and he could accompany her.

Setting foot in the house for the second time that day, was strange. It felt like Vernon could jump on her, coming from every corner, even though she knew he was in custody. She entered the living room carefully, but the memories got the better of her. She realised with a start she had been forcefully reminded of her time with the Death Eaters, and now her moral was so low, she didn't want to go there again. Start with the stairs then, she thought. Henry would need to know the specifications of Harry's fall, if that was what had happened… The stairs were being examined by someone from the forensics department, who nodded to the person next to her. Just on that moment, they came with UV-lights, and she realised they were looking for blood stains. And there was a lot of blood… Tom looked at her questioningly.

"What do you think?"

She raised a brow. "I'm not on this case, nor will I be."

He nodded. "Yes, but I want your advice."

No, you want to distract me, she thought privately. She appreciated it. "Well, blood patterns suggest that this is indeed where he got his injuries. You can see it starts at the top of the stairs with a few spots, and then it increases. Luckily, nothing suggests that there was an artery hit or damaged."

"He fell down?"

"It's not possible to say if he was pushed – perhaps Henry can tell you that."

They went upstairs, evading the blood stains and carrying the UV-lights with them. She went straight to Harry's room.

"Strange.", she muttered.

"What?"

"The blood here is more recent then the blood on the stairs. Assuming all his injuries are the result of him falling down the stairs, he couldn't come up here without help – someone would have had to carry him. That proves they knew he was injured – not that there was any doubt. But also, look at this room! Nothing is his, it looks like a storage room for broken or unused things. Well, except the trunk with his school supplies."

"So, neglect at best?", Tom asked.

"Yes. Henry will be able to tell you if he was abused – unhealed broken bones and such will show up on X-ray."

Jane looked around one more time sadly. She could not believe how little Harry had had. She could understand why he had remained silent, though; she had been the same, back in the days. You would always hope it become better if you tried harder, was a better kid. And later, you would never believe someone cared enough to come and get you out.

Technically, she could quit here. But at the same time, she couldn't. She had to know everything.

"Can you give me a moment, Tom?", she asked softly. "I'll pack a few things for Harry."

He nodded, and stepped out. She heard him checking Dudley's room. Slowly, she dropped her shields. Jane knew that if something terrible happened, the emotions of those involved were etched in materials. And indeed, she could feel Harry's pain, coming from the bed. Concentrating harder, she was rewarded with a flash, and there he was – uncle Vernon, dragging Harry's bloody body after him. If she concentrated hard enough, she could picture what had happened. She began absentmindedly collecting items from the room, clothes were scattered around – those with bloodstains she left behind.

_Vernon entered, dragging Harry behind him. He was looking like she had last seen him, only he was somehow awake. Vernon threw him on the bed unceremoniously._

"_You should have known better! I refuse to continue to clean up your messes, boy!", he shouted._

_Harry just moaned. She followed Vernon back to the stairs, while the memory was rewinding. Jane watched as the duo came up the stairs and then… nothing? She waited, until – there he was, right after the fall. She waited as he came up the stairs, his fall reversed – the strangest thing she had ever witnessed in her life – and then concentrated on what was happening right before it. Harry had come running from his room, Vernon behind him and-_

"Jane?", she heard someone asking.

She looked up, to see Tom. "I… Was lost in thought. I don't think this is the first… incident, and I missed it all…"

"Don't, Jane. We all did. He was good in hiding it. There's no shame in making a mistake; only in not learning from one."

She nodded. She had lied, though. Because she couldn't tell what she'd seen right before he interrupted: Dudley had made Harry trip, resulting in his fall. The Dursleys had probably tried to protect him from legal action and an investigation. They worried about money and their good name more than over their nephew… It just was so… she didn't even have words for it.

She cleared her throat. "Let's check downstairs, okay?"

They went back to the living room, and she went straight for the cupboard. On the bottom of the locks was a date engraved - first of December, 1981. Inside it, there was a bed, a couple of cloths and quite a lot of blood.

They looked at each other. "I think we found where he first was after falling down the stairs.", she said faintly.

"But why move him?"

"It was a panic reaction to put him in here. After that, they realised if people came over and he made a sound… Well, can't explain that, can you?"

Her mobile chimed. "Sorry, it's Henry. I'm going back there."

"I'm going to wrap this up and go interrogate some people next morning.", Tom said.

_**Warning of child abuse ends**_

* * *

"**How is he?", she asked when she came back in the Hospital Wing. **

"We've set all broken bones. Recovery is going to take time, and we'll keep him in a coma, because it looks like his brain has taken a hit – no bleeding though, nor elevated pressure in the skull, so we're optimistic."

"Good. I'm off again, then. Got to inform court. And his godfather…", she said, trailing off. How did you break such news, she wondered?

She shook her head, and flooed to the British Ministry of Magic. Not many knew it, but there was a judge for cases that concerned both wizards and muggles. He had taken on her case, when she tried to find her sister, without even knowing a name, or a place. They had kept in touch. And so, it was not strange she 'passed by'. He often gave legal advice.

With a heavy hart, she knocked.

"Come in!", Judge Lawrell called. She knew who it was, since she was the only person arriving this early.

"Judge.", she said, bowing her head a little as she entered and closed the door behind her.

"How are things this morning?", the judge asked cheerfully.

Jane bowed her head. "Not so good, judge Lawrell."

"Oh?", she asked concerned.

Taking a deep breath, she replied: "I have a new case for you. A friend of mine… I went to his house, and… there was blood on this cupboard and on the stairs. He was upstairs, in a room and he was… in a pretty bad shape. Lots of broken bones. Investigation is not complete, but based on what I have seen, he fell down the stairs and his relatives stuffed him in a cupboard and lather in his room."

The judge sighed. "It's those cases, they are the worst. How is he?"

"It's looking good, but recovery will take time. But we need to talk about custody."

"And a few other things, I'd imagine. Well, how old is he?"

"Thirteen. Fourteen in a few weeks."

"Then he should have a voice in this. Let me know when he's recovered enough for a court session – until then, he is to stay in whatever hospital he is in, and his relatives will pay the bills, as they are still responsible for him. Every medical discussion needs to be discussed with me present. I'll let the paperwork go out to prison, too. What's his name?"

"Yeah, that's another thing… I feel like secrecy is needed."

"Who is it?", the judge pressed, eyebrows raised.

"Harry Potter."

* * *

**It was late in the afternoon when Jane found herself before a prison gate, waiting for the signal she could come in.** It had cost her more arguing then she had hoped to get this to work, but in the end, she managed to convince them. She yawned, and tried to count how long she had been awake. She had not slept since she found Harry, so that was nearly a day. Then before that, there had been several meetings. So that was a day and a half.

The guard nodded to her, and she went in the visitor's room, waiting patiently.

"Madame ambassador!", Sirius Black said, as he walked in. The guard accompanying him took of the handcuffs, and stated they had half an hour max.

"Mister Black.", she greeted back.

"None of that, call me Sirius.", he said.

He looked way better, she thought. He'd had a shave; his hair was neat and cut. There was more colour on his cheeks, and he looked like he had gained back weight, until a healthier level.

"Then call me Jane.", she replied, smiling. "How are things here?"

"Well, this place is amazing! I can go on walks, visitors can come – though only Remus came – I get food, there are things to do like pottery and all. It's really refreshing compared to Azkaban."

She hadn't known Remus had come by. "I'm glad you like it here. Also, since he probably is not going to mention it himself, Remus has tried to get you free since you were there."

"You're right, he didn't say that. I heard you gave him a job?"

"He was the best candidate.", she replied, smiling lightly.

"And now you are here! To what do I own this unexpected pleasure?", the man asked light-heartedly.

"I've also heard you don't visit the mind Healer here?", she questioned.

"Don't feel the need.", he replied curtly.

She nodded. She felt like it was the wrong call – no one came out of that hellhole unshattered – but it was his choice. "The Healer here and Henry are old friends – Henry is my… father.", she said, hoping he didn't pick up the slight hesitation. If he did, nothing gave it away.

"So, are you going to update me on the trial? Does the government have something to tell me?", he pressed.

She sighed. "Neither.", she looked down, took a deep breath and looked him in the eye again. "Something happened to Harry."

Jane quietly explained all she knew, and that was not a lot. By the end of it, Sirius looked worn. "Those muggles!", he exclaimed.

"Sirius, please.", she protested weakly, closing her eyes temporarily.

"Why haven't you done something?! Or Remus, or Dumbledore, or the Weasley's or Hermione – or like, anyone at all?!"

"We didn't know.", she said averting her gaze. "I know it's not an excuse. He never said anything, off course and we never saw anything."

Sirius sighed, and made a pacifying gesture. "I don't- "

"Don't", she interrupted, "I understand. So, I spoke to the Prime Minister and Minister of Justice, and they agreed you can visit him."

"What?!", he said surprised.

"There are conditions – a crew of Aurors will join us, you won't get a wand back and if you are found with one, unless it's self-defence, you'll come back here straight away. Someone needs to be with you when you visit Harry. When you're not with him, we'll lock you up where you've been locked up before."

"Yes, yes, I understand.", he said, looking excited.

She smiled tiredly. "Come on then.", she said.

They apparated with the Aurors directly into the Hospital Wing. Jane and Sirius walked to Harry's room, meeting Henry on the way.

"How is he?", Sirius asked.

"Stable. It's looking good – we might be able to wake him up next week.", Henry said, looking tired. "Will you keep an eye on him, Jane? There's a Healer on duty, of course; I'm going to take a quick nap."

Jane nodded, and steered Sirius into the right direction. One corner away, she came to a halt. "I realise, you probably have never seen anything like this; but it's really not as bad as it seems. Keep that in mind.", she said softly.

He nodded, and they rounded the corner. They stopped before a window – or not exactly a window, maybe; a glass part in the wall? Jane had actually no idea what is was called, it looked like a window to her. It allowed people to look in the room, without crowding it. Next to her, Sirius paled visibly. But he was standing, she noted. Not a surprise; purebloods and showing weakness, it was though love.

"Merlin.", he whispered quietly. "What is all that?", he asked shocked.

"Well eh, where should we start… The tube there, in his mouth, is connected to a ventilator. That's breathing for him. Then there's the thing with all those lines – that's also beeping like mad, completely normal – it shows the ECG- "

"The what?", he asked confused. Out of habit and tiredness, she had used the abbreviation.

"Electrocardiogram. It shows the electrical activity in the heart, which is a measure of how good it's working. Most heart problems will show up on that, and then an alarm would go off. It also shows how much oxygen he effectively inhales, which should be above ninety, and how much carbon dioxide he produces. That's also basic diagnostic things. That's measured by the thing on his finger. Then there is blood pressure measured by the thing around his arm. If anything is wrong, an alarm goes off. The bag with fluid gives food and medication, since he won't be awake for another week at least. And that's about it, I believe."

He looked at her strangely. "Are you a Healer or something?"

"Though question. I have a license as a doctor – the Muggle version of a Healer in emergency situations. Henry has a licence as a surgeon – more like operations and all. I'm more like… How should I explain this… I'm the first doctor one sees when one comes to a hospital unplanned. If it's not that bad, I treat and sent home. If it's worse, I give first care and then call in a specialist."

"But you're… How old are you, exactly?"

"Fourteen."

"So young."

"I'm motivated. For your information, Harry has the same license as I have."

"Really?"

"Yeah, you know if an emergency comes – you know, you cut in your finger or something – well, you can't rely on magic at home, so we wanted to know what to do. And first aid is a useful tool to have. Shall we?", she said, gesturing to the room. She didn't want to continue the topic.

Sirius nodded, and they went in.

"Hi Harry.", she started. "I've brought you a visitor. Prime Minister Dubois was not happy about it, but what's life without annoying authorities?"

She nodded to him. "Hi Harry. It's Sirius. I'm here for you, kid." He seemed unsure.

"You can talk about his parents for example, or read for him, or play music. As long as he hears something, it's all good."

She waited until he nodded. "Jean here is going to stay with you – I'm going to fetch Remus."

She apparated with her house-elf and knocked. For the second time that day, she told what she knew. Remus was just as shocked and angry as Sirius had been, and he was more than willing to come over. The three of them sat there in the quiet room, with the lights dimmed, and Jane felt herself slowly falling asleep, to the sound of both Sirius' and Remus' voices.

* * *

**Jane woke refreshed early the next day – six o'clock, she noticed on the clock on the bedside.** She stretched, and caught Remus Lupin's gaze. He was reading some book to Harry –

Harry. Feeling more awake, she frantically checked his parameters, letting out a sigh of relief when she noticed they were okay.

"Were you planning on sleeping anytime soon, or did you think you could go without such a thing?"

She flinched. Remus sounded like he wasn't happy.

"I've had a busy few days –"

"Because you insist on doing things on your own. Sometimes, you need to be able to give things out of your hands.", he replied.

Before she could reply, the door opened, and there was Sirius.

"Oh, you're awake. I thought it would take more time than that."

He sounded vaguely impressed.

"Well, I need to get going, freshen up a bit. There are bathrooms and bedrooms on the far end of the corridor, feel free to make use of them."

"I'll head back to the WWC this afternoon.", Lupin said. "That's the winning name for your 'hotel' for werewolves. WereWolf Center."

"Yeah, about that.", Sirius chimed in. "You need anything for that, give me a sign, okay?"

"Sure.", she said, a little taken aback.

After a quick shower, she felt a little more human. On her way down, she ran into Henry.

"Good morning sleeping beauty.", he said, an absent look in his eyes.

"Good morning. You look like you have news?", she said, knowing he probably had ordered some lab tests on Harry's blood.

**Warning child abuse commences**

"Nothing good. Do you plan on eating anytime soon?", he asked tentatively, attempting a bad joke.

"Nope, way too early."

"Join me in my office, then.", he sighed.

They walked in silence.

"Here's the lab report.", Henry said, staring at the ceiling.

Reading through it as fast as she could, she frowned at their conclusion. "So, they fed him the bare minimum to keep him alive, while their son is as obese as he can be? Such _lovely _people."

"Wait for it. It gets worse." He gestured to the X-ray's on the wall.

"That's a lot of bones that have been broken.", she said. She frowned.

"What?", Henry asked.

Off course, she thought. As a surgeon, he rarely had to do with those long-term effects of abuse.

"Well, you see all this thicker bone tissue, as a sign of old breaks, it's all on extremities – arms, legs, wrists, ankles."

"And?", he asked frowning.

"Two possible conclusions. One, some kind of issue with his bones. Highly unlikely –"

"Why?", Henry asked confused.

"He fell of his broom last year, remember? If he had brittle-bone disease, he would've broken every bone in his body." Henry nodded in understanding, so she continued. "Second option: he fell a lot, hard. Meaning, they didn't hit him; but they did push him. Based on what I've seen in that house and what I see here, I'd say he was pushed regularly, but only this time he fell badly and ended up falling from the stairs."

Henry nodded pensively. "Now you mention it. You don't think they hit him?"

"No, because those breaks our on extremities. When you're hit, you curl up. Meaning your arms and legs are less exposed. Mostly ribs are broken. But they seem all fine."

He nodded. "Time to break the news…", he sighed.

"There's one last thing I'd like to discuss with you…", she said, trailing off.

**End of warning**

Forty-five minutes later, they sat around the table with Remus Lupin and Sirius Black. After the briefing – and a lot of swearing on Sirius' part – Jane cleared her throat.

"There's one last thing we need to discuss.", she started, looking from face to face. "Guardianship."

"How can that be a problem? He can live with me.", Sirius said.

"I know both of you would like that, yes. But the truth is, the moment the trial about this is going to be held, it'll be impossible. You won't be cleared of charges yet."

"Then he can live somewhere else-"

"I think the judge will want to go with continuity.", she replied.

"So let him go to Remus then!", Sirius replied angrily.

"There's the matter of his werewolf condition. To this judge it won't matter, but Harry would've to face the music from community, the moment word got out. And again, being a werewolf means Remus can't be there all time."

"He can be until my trial-"

"Sirius, you have to understand the judge will have to pretend the possibility exists you _are_ guilty."

Sirius shoulders slumped.

"However", she continued, "you could always try." Holding up a hand to stop him from interrupting, she continued. "There's a but. If the godfather is unavailable, your family would have a claim. I've taken liberty to search out who: Andromeda Tonks and Narcissa Malfoy. Unfortunately, Narcissa has a stronger claim, since she has a son his age."

"They hate each other!", Remus interrupted her.

"I know. But the law doesn't care about that."

"So what do we do?", Sirius asked desperately.

"There's another family in the Light who is willing to take him.", she said, once again holding up a hand, "Let me explain, please. I can't give you the name of this family. Their identity is secret. But Harry knows the children of that family, and so do I. I talked to them, and they agreed to take him. Remus has the right to visit, and in this agreement here stands that they will not impede him to do so, unless on the explicit request of Harry himself, voiced with both you, Remus, and them at the same time. Sirius, you will be given a house close to them, and you'll always be welcome to visit Harry. You'll have a say in any important decision in his life – medical, schooling, serious punishment for the bigger things. You can have him over on any time you want, although they would like to know when he is with you. Unofficially, you'll get half guardianship. Should anything happen to this family, then you are granted full custody, together with Remus here – since it will be in the will, the ministry won't be able to stop it."

Sirius remained silent for at least ten minutes, before looking to Remus, who nodded. "Sounds good.", he said dejectedly.

"There are two conditions.", she said delicately. "One, you get cleared off all charges. If that doesn't happen, Remus gets your rights. They will support Harry in his decision to visit you in prison or not. Second, you need to see a mind healer."

Sirius head snapped up so fast she worried for his neck. "I don't need a mind healer-"

"Padfoot.", Remus said warningly. "Can you grant us a moment?", he said, looking at Jane. She waved them of.

"That went well.", she remarked dryly to Henry. She heard hushed voices on the other side of the door.

"The man has to give up custody, after all that he has heard now. Give him time.", Henry advised wisely.

She sighed. Truth to be told, she was not sure if she was making the right call. Oh, she was not worried about Sirius involvement in the deal; it was all the secrets she would have to keep. But it was the only way to convince the judge, she thought. If they gave up their rights to a family who had sworn to protect Harry, it would convince the judge they had his best interest in hearts, and give the family extra leverage over Malfoy…

Ten minutes later, they entered again.

"What guaranties do we have that family will be good for Harry?", Remus asked as they sad back down.

"You can come in check anytime, and they will be taking an Unbreakable Vow to protect Harry. In fact, they already have.", she replied.

Remus and Sirius look at each other. "We have a deal.", Remus announces.

"I would like to explain this to Harry.", Sirius says.

"Off course.", she nods.

After signing, Remus goes back to the WWC. Jane goes to sit with Harry, and Sirius retires to his room to nap a bit.

Being alone, she decides to play on the piano for a bit. It was meant as a surprise for Harry, but playing his favourite songs might help. She let out a breath, and started playing _Killing me softly (with his song)_. She got lost in thought like always when she played, so when she played the final notes and heard a voice, she flinched instinctively.

"You play well.", Sirius remarked.

"Thank you.", she replied, deciding on _Africa_ next.

"I'm sorry about earlier. I was just upset with the situation…"

"I understand, Sirius, truly."

They sat in silence for a while. "You are so mature for your age.", he said, sighing.

She pulled a face. "I had to grow up fast."

He studied her curiously, but said nothing. And so they sat for a while.

*** I'm not sure if it is entirely clear, but Vernon is realising she is probably a witch, because she knows Harry. He never had an interest in Harry, so he wouldn't know they are friends. He does not want her in his house because of her being a witch, but since she lives in the neighbourhood, it would be strange if he didn't let her in. He's hoping he can scare her off to never come back, that would fit in with their story that Harry is some kind of criminal.**

**** I'll keep Dumbledore in the dark, for the moment. That's why she isn't here. For clarity's sake: this is not a Dumbledore bashing, but I do think he has made some mistakes. There will be more on that in a much later chapter – probably after the Department of Mysteries debacle – and I'll try to keep in mind to remind you of this detail there. I'll also give Dumbledore a chance to explain and redeem himself. My question to you is, do you think he would change his path for Harry, or would all stay the same for him? Let me know in a review/PM. Thank you! On that note… Quite random, but what house do you think Jane will be in, and why?**

**We made it to chapter 20! As you most likely have noticed, I'm updating considerably slower. I've had a hard time mentally, and writing was difficult. There were times I truly wanted to give up on this, because it just turned out different then in my head and it made me so sad. If I read this, it feels like I can't write at all. I don't want to discontinue this, since obviously people are reading this, and I don't want to disapoint them. But I also was struggling with the fact it was not at all what I had originally in my head. It took me a while to realise that's okay. I think I've also be too focussed on this story, and trying to hard to make this work. To prevent that from happening again, I'll continue this and start another story, about how Neville lived through everything that happened in canon. If you feel like it, you can check it out. It's going to be called Neville's story, because I'm not creative enough to come up with another name. If it turns out the combination is also not working, I'll put Neville's story on hold and continue to upload this, while trying to find another way to upload faster.  
**

**Thank you for bearing with me all this time! Seriously, I can't say it enough. The people following/favouriting/reviewing/reading are legend!**

**Songs used:**

**\- Killing me softly (with his song), in the version by Roberta Flack (because Jane sees resmblance between Harry and her)**

**\- Africa, by Toto (telling him she'll always be at his side, in the lines _it's gonna take a lot to drag me away from you_ but also the lines ****_I seek to cure what's deep inside, frightened of this thing that I've become, _since Jane wants to help Harry healing mentally after this, but is affraid she is too damaged to do so)**

**All credits for the songs to the respective bands.**

**I'm already working on next update, and it will be soon, I promise. I hope to get it out next week (but no promises on that, I'm affraid...)**

**Your sincerely,**

**HPFan1999**


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N: As a warning: this chapter will again include a mention of abuse. As usual, I'll repeat the warning when we cross that bridge.**

**Secondly, I'll try to make the trials a bit funnier – and I hope I pull that off – because there's so little to enjoy from fourth year on.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**One and a half week later, Henry finally gave green light to wake Harry up from his induced coma. **They all cheer for a bit, and Sirius, Remus and Jane stay in the room, to be there when he wakes. It takes several hours, and Sirius is getting more and more nervous.

"Are you sure nothing is wrong?", he asked for what must have been the millionth time.

"He's taking all the time he needs to wake up. There's no sign of anything going wrong," she repeated for what felt like the millionth time, checking his vitals again.

"But you are checking his vitals so much- "

"To reassure you. Truly, it's just a lot- "Jane trailed off. She smiled. "Looks like he's coming round," she said, moving to a corner. She felt like Harry and Sirius needed some time together. As such, she gave them some room.

Indeed, fifteen minutes later, his eyelashes moved a tiny bit.

"Harry?", Sirius asked hopefully.

And there it was. Harry opened his eyes, squinting against the light. She quickly adjusted the dimmer.

"Mpf," Harry tries to say something, but he's still a little stoned. And his throat is probably dry, because of the just an hour ago removed tube to put him on the ventilator. He sighs, closes his eyes and opens them again. "Sirius?"

It sounds feebler and weaker than she'd ever heard him. But it's there. Harry woke, spoke even, recognised someone he recently met. All good signs.

"I'm here, Harry," he says, squeezing his hand. It takes all Jane had not to run up to his bedside.

Harry looks around, while Sirius gently places the glasses on his face.

"Remus," It sounds more like a content sigh then a statement.

But Remus chuckles softly. "What, you thought we were going to leave you alone? I was only just able to stop Padfoot from curling up at your feet."

"Hey now!", Sirius protests. Jane smiles a little.

But Harry frowns, until he spots her in the corner.

"So, I did see you," he states feebly.

"Well, yes. You know me; you need one strong herbicide to get rid of me, not stopping to come see me."

He snorted.

"Do you remember everything?", Sirius asks softly.

There's a strange tone in his voice.

Harry nods, and shift uncomfortably.

Jane's eyeing the monitors.

"Harry?", Sirius prompts softly, as Harry turns away.

_Shit._ A nurse comes in, but Jane barely notices it. She steps forward, towards the monitor.

"Harry?", Remus asks concerned.

For Harry just started to gasp for breath.

"Easy there!", Sirius exclaims, sounding shocked. "Shhh, breath. Just breath. In with me, out with me okay?"

Jane moves up to the bed as an alarm sounds, and she looks at the monitor. Her eyes are switching between the monitors and Harry's arms, where veins start to pop out.

"Shit," she whispers so softly they don't even hear it. Oxygenation dropped below eighty percent, as another glance at the monitor teaches her, and as she looks back to Harry, his eyes roll back.

"Harry!", both Sirius and Remus shout at the same time, shocked.

"Nurse!", she says forcefully, gesturing to the two off them. She needs them out of the room.

The nurse shuffles them out, and Jean, who stood guard before the door, comes to her help.

More alarms start to screech. Heart rate's up, blood pressure's dropping, she notices.

"Get me a chest tube!", she commands the nurse, setting the IV drip as open as she can and administering some painkillers.

She grabs a scalpel from the table and makes a swift incision, just below the second rib. Taking over the chest tube and putting it in place, she watches the monitors as the oxygenation comes up again, though not as high as she would like.

At some point in time, Henry had come walking in.

But more importantly right now, blood pressure is still dropping, heart rate at 130… And as she looked down at the chest tube, she shaw her fear confirmed: the fluid coming out of it was not clear, but reddish. Blood, she thought. But _how_?

They eye each other, and she sees him curse. Then he turns to the nurse, rattling off medicines she should administer, to get his blood pressure up, and ordering a chest X-ray.

He gestures for her to come outside with him, and so she does.

"Gather the team," she orders quietly. She stares at the room were Sirius and Remus are waiting.

Henry nods. "Are you sure you want to do this alone?"

She nods, without averting her eyes. He walks off without another word.

Stopping before the door, she takes a deep breath, before entering.

"You!", Sirius screams. Before either she or Remus can react, he punches her on the nose, and she falls back. Instinctively, she reaches for her nose. As she withdraws her hand, she sees blood.

She doesn't even react when Sirius comes towards her again, but Remus does.

"Sirius! Enough!", he says forcefully, in an uncharacteristic harsh voice.

"She stabbed him!", Sirius yells back.

Remus holds him back, his arms around Sirius. "She saved his life!", he says over and over again, while Sirius continues to struggle.

"She- ", Sirius stops struggling abruptly, "What?", he asks weekly. "Oh no… Jane? Jane, I'm sorry- "

Jane stares of in the distance.

They are interrupted by Jean, who comes bursting through the door.

"What's all this noise?", he asks. Noticing Jane on the floor, he asks: "What happened?"

Jane blinks sluggishly. "I tripped over the carpet. Sirius tried to catch me and hit me on the nose by accident. I kind of zoned out a bit, so they were probably panicking a bit. But I'm fine, really."

The look on Jean's face says he doesn't believe an ounce of it, but he nods, helps her up, heals her nose, and leaves.

"I'm sorry," Sirius repeats sincerely.

"As am I.", she sighs, lowering herself in a chair. "I didn't realise how this would look like in your eyes." As a pureblood, it was unlikely that he knew a lot about muggle medicine.

"So, what happened in there… He was waking up. I noticed his sats were dropping – the amount of oxygen in his blood. When I came closer, I noticed the veins in his arms were popping. Both are a sign of elevated pressure in the thorax. Two likely causes: heart tamponade and pneumothorax. I leaned towards pneumothorax, because of the other symptoms – low blood pressure, high heart rate, and medical history."

"What in the world is even a pneumothorax?", Sirius asked bewildered. Remus was frowning concerned.

"Well… you have the lungs, and in order to breath, they need to expand. So, the lungs follow the movement of the ribs for that, and between them are the pleura. Kind of a sack of some kind. This only works well if there's nothing between the pleura and the lungs. When something does come in between them, it's called pneumothorax."

"But how did he get it?", Remus asked thoughtfully. "Forgive me if I'm wrong, but I thought they only occurred after major trauma?"

"Most commonly then, yes. Why it happened, we are going to discuss with all necessary specialists. Meanwhile, you can go back in, on the condition you leave when we ask you to do so."

Both men nodded, and she went to join the experts.

* * *

**Unfortunately, the discussion with the experts was not really enlightening, so far. **Half an hour in, and all they had achieved was that Jane wanted to strangle every single person – except Henry – in the room. They thought her too young and inexperienced, and it was getting on her nerves.

"I truly do not see your point," the lung specialist said. She had forgotten his name.

She pinched the bridge of her nose. "I don't see yours either. You seem to think this pneumothorax is spontaneous, but he's not smoking, he doesn't have COPD or any other related risk- "

"He has been ventilated," the man interrupted her.

Henry frowned. "Perhaps, just to cover all ground, we can explore the idea of it not being spontaneous?", he suggested.

"Then what could it have caused?", the pulmonologist asked sceptically.

Silence rang in the room. "Well, if it's caused by something, it probably has to do something with his fall," Henry said reasonably.

Jane breathed in sharply as realisation struck her, and she started rummaging through reports until she found the right one.

"But why now?", the pulmonologist asked.

"Because we are idiots," Jane said, having read through the entire report. "This is Harry's lab results from his blood on the day he was admitted. Look at this – anaemic, short on several vitamins, short on platelets."

"Yes, and?", the pulmonologist asked impatiently.

"The one thing that is actually not below scale, are his white blood cells."

Henry nodded. "They are normal- "

"Except they aren't. They are in the standard range, but what if they were elevated from their mean?"

"I'm lost," the pulmonologist admits.

"It's simple. Consider a malnourished patient, with too few red blood cells and platelets. It's logical to assume his white blood cells are lower, too. But if that patient has an infection- "

"They will appear normal," Henry said softly.

She nodded. "We saw what we wanted to see."

"You mean to say he has been battling of pneumonia all this time?", the pulmonologist askes bewildered. "How could we miss that?"

"How would we have noticed, with Harry sedated and on ventilator? He would not be able to feel the pain that comes with it. The trouble with breathing was solved by the ventilator," she replies, thinking hard.

"But things like fever- "

"Are not uncommon after the major trauma he suffered," she replies.

"And then it passes, and we thought nothing of it…", Henry asks.

Just then the nurse knocks on the door with the result of the chest X-ray.

The three of them stare at the pictures for ten minutes.

"I think the three of us need to talk to the family," the pulmonologist concludes.

"Let's go find them, Jane.", Henry says meaningfully. "We'll bring them to the waiting room."

The pulmonologist is barely out of sight, when Henry turns around. "You know that, legally, the call is yours, don't you?" Her shocked face tells him she didn't. "Since the Dursleys obviously can't get involved, Sirius nor Remus has any official rights, and you are emancipated."

She groans mentally.

Jane's still pondering on the subject when the five of them are gathered in the waiting room.

The pulmonologist – god, what was his name again, she thinks - clears his throat. "So, we think we found the reason for his pneumothorax. You have been explained what that is, correct?"

Sirius and Remus nod.

"Right. The X-ray show considerable damage to the right lung. There are two possible causes: pneumonia, or something – most likely a bone shard – punctured the lung. Given the fact that the damage was not there when he was brought in, there are no broken ribs, and there are no bone shards visible, we concluded that pneumonia was the most likely cause. The fluid that comes with infection probably leaked through the lung, into the space between the pleura and the lung. That caused an increase of heart rate, which in turn caused a small blood vessel to rupture."

He pauses, and both Sirius and Remus nod again.

"Now, for the course of action. That's a bit of a problem. We can start him on broad-spectrum antibiotics: they will kill off most bacteria known for causing pneumonia, especially if we give more than one. However, the cause could be viral. In that case the antibiotics will not help. We have asked the lab if they could figure that out for us, but the results will only be here tomorrow morning at earliest."

"Is that a problem?", Sirius askes concerned.

They exchange glances. Jane finally answers, rubbing her tired eyes. "Yes. We can start him on antibiotics anyway, blindly, so to speak. If we are wrong, however, we'll do more damage than good. Normally, the side-effects are well tolerated; but Harry has been severely injured for quite some time, on top of this infection. He has weakened considerably. Paradoxically, giving him antibiotics will increase the risk of another infection, combined with the side-effects. * However, if we do nothing, and it is bacterial pneumonia, it will not get better. And here's the problem again how weakened he is."

"Isn't there something else you can do?", Remus asks reasonably.

"We can remove part of the lung, where the infection is," Henry replies. "But then again, it's a though surgery, with high risk – especially now."

"Another danger is that the germs from his lung spread through the blood. This is called septic shock, and I'm afraid that Harry would not survive that.", the pulmonologist continues.

Sirius pales visibly. "That bad?"

They all nod.

"So, what do you suggest?", Remus asks, unsettled.

The two older men look at each other, and say nothing.

"I suggest we give antibiotics anyway," Jane says calmly. "The blood results from when he was admitted suggest bacterial infection, because certain types of white blood cells are elevated." Both other doctors nod. "And for the rupture of the blood vessel: the bleeding is under control with medicines. It's probably not necessary to perform surgery. If his condition takes a turn, then we can re-evaluate."

"You mean to say you could have noted the pneumonia before because of the white blood cells?", Sirius says, frowning, trying to keep the accusation out of his voice.

"In hindsight, it's easy to spot. Back then… I think we had to few indications. He doesn't display all typical symptoms, and his white blood cells without infection are below par. But with it, they appear to be in the normal range. That's why no alarm bells rung," Jane replies calmly.

Both men nod. They exchange a glance. "Do it," Sirius decides after a while.

And so, they do. The fear for septic shock remains. Jane decides to go sit with Sirius, Remus and Harry, knowing full well if he displayed symptoms, it wouldn't matter enough to make a difference. But she had to do something.

He was knocked out again, but not in a come – more like a peaceful slumber. Jane sat behind her piano, and decided to play _don't leave me this way_, followed by _Please don't go_, hoping that somehow, he would hear and understand it.

* * *

**It turned out to be bacterial pneumonia, and the antibiotics made a huge difference.** After three days, they exchanged the ventilator for oxygen. Harry was a nice patient; he didn't nag, wasn't demanding in any way. His only problem was that he downplayed his pain and discomfort.

Jane tried to sit with him as much as she could, since, despite her protest, Sirius was behind bars in France again. Remus came by as much as he could, too; bringing stories about Harry's parents. She always made her excuse when he came; Harry had noticed she hadn't said anything about them being family, and he had voiced his displeasure loud enough. Luckily, when she visits, they play piano. Harry had apparently heard her play, come or not, and he had decided he wanted to learn it. And, as he had explained to her, it was something he could easily do sitting.

But he was improving rapidly. And that was good, since both the trial against his relatives and the trial against Sirius were rapidly approaching. Due to boredom, he had taken a course to become an assistant of lawyer; he could now plead cases for a court, although accompanied by lawyer.

First of August was _the day_ for Jane, who had followed the same course and would assist Peter in the trial against the Dursleys. They had been officially charged; therefore, when a call from the prison they resided in came, it was a surprise.

"Are you sure you want to do this?", Henry asked – a little anxious. Jean was driving, of course; the rest of the team had stayed with Harry. He was under the impression Jane would be doing some shopping. She had not wanted him to know. There was no need to torment him with that knowledge.

"What do you want, Dudley?", she asks minutes later. It was he who called her, and yet he had said nothing, except for a greeting.

"How is… Harry?", he asks hesitantly.

"He'll live," she replies shortly. Jane tried to keep in mind he was just a child, raised with wrong believes. But on the other hand, so had she; and yet she had not proceeded to become a Death Eater. She knew it had taken a lot of will power; was it wrong to blame people who didn't have that will power? Or was that just something human?

**Warning of child abuse**

Dudley nods a few times.

"He was running… Dad was in a bad mood. He had called for Harry to come make some tea, but Harry didn't come at first. That didn't improve his mood… And Harry came running by, and I sort of… I sort of always try to make him trip at the top of the stairs, just for fun…"

Jane nearly bites her tong off to keep herself from saying that some things aren't jokes. Instead, she just nods in encouragement.

"Normally, he evades… But he didn't he just fell and then all of a sudden, he was at the bottom of the stairs and I was screaming like mad, hollering… I – I don't actually remember well what happened next…"

Shock, she thought. At the broken look in his eyes, she feels a flash of sympathy.

"And then I- I heard Dad say that we should hide him, that he would be fine on his own accord, and then we have hidden him in the cupboard for some days, but sometimes we could hear him, and then… I suppose wanted him out of there when you came."

She nods. "How long?" She has to ask. She has to know.

Dudley bows his head. "Three days."

She closes her eyes. Jane can't imagine what it must have been like, alone in that cupboard, alone with the pain... "Why are you telling me this?", she asks, as she opens her eyes.

For the first time, Dudley looks her in the eye. "I want to testify against them. In order to continue with my life, I need to be punished for this. I need to come to terms with it; that I nearly committed a murder."

Technically, even if Harry had died immediately after impact, it would have been manslaughter at worse. An involuntary one at that.

She eyes him. "For what it's worth: I think you're doing the right thing."

After that, she gets up and leaves.

* * *

**There are limited people in the court room.** There's a Ministry representative from the Wizengamot – luckily not Dumbledore, but Malfoy is not much better – Judge Lawrell, Sirius with his guards, Remus, and of course Harry and Jane with Peter and Henry.

"The court is now in session. In consideration is a matter of custody of Harry James Potter and criminal charges of extreme neglect which could have caused death against his former guardians, Vernon and Petunia Dursley; along with charges of assault against their son and common assault by Vernon and Petunia Dursley**. Bring them in.", Judge Lawrell rattles off.

The Dursleys have, of course, an expensive lawyer. He had protested against Dudley being there, to no avail.

The criminal charges were not a lot of work.

"Mister Potter, come sit here, please," the judge orders. "I want you to take the oath."

"I swear to tell the truth, and nothing but the truth, so help me God."

Harry explains what happened on the day of his fall, his story very much the same as what Dudley told – only not as detailed after his fall. Unfortunately for the Dursleys, the Judge also asks about his home life before that. What they hear is not endearing, to say the least: starvation, hard physical labour, mental abuse or some terms that spring out of it.

"Good," she concludes, after his testimony. "Cross-interrogation, attorney?"

Luckily, the man declines – perhaps he realises he won't win anything with it, as a hard questioning of a minor will not endear the judge. He'll probably give everything with the testimonies of the Dursleys.

Vernon takes the oath, and not even a minute has passed before he starts lying. "The child is so uncareful. But of course, we do not leave him without care. He only is afraid of doctors, and as such he hides his injuries. Now you mention it, we didn't see him for quite some time. He's also mentally deranged, always telling stories…"

He goes on and on.

"Mister Dursley," the judge interrupts sharply. "Do you have anything else to say that hasn't been said already? No? Then your testimony is concluded. Cross-interrogation?"

"Yes, your honour.", Jane says, rising from her seat. "Mister Dursley, are you certain that you never left an injury unattended to?"

"Off course," he replies gruffly. Veins are swelling in his neck already.

"Permission to approach the witness, your honour?"

"Granted."

"This is a report of previous injuries, established by Doctor Henry over there. Would you read the conclusion on page 6, please?"

"… Several broken bones have not set themselves properly. The remaining damage limited the child in grow. The child was no fed enough to grow sufficiently. His red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets are below par. The effects will likely not disappear entirely."

"Do you have anything to say for yourself?", Jane asked quietly.

"It's all lies!"

She thanks him for his answer.

Petunia Dursley tells much the same tale as her husband. Jane doesn't even bother with a cross-interrogation. They had their chance to redeem themselves, and they didn't take it. But then it's Dudley Dursley's turn.

"What happened that day, Dudley?", his lawyer asks him quietly, smiling to encourage him.

Dudley averts his eyes. The room is quiet for a while.

Then, he looks up, straight into Harry's eyes.

"My Dad wanted Harry to make tea. He asked to come to the kitchen. Harry must have missed it the first time around, and Dad was getting impatient. It just… Seemed fun to … you know, make him trip. Usually he avoids it, but that day he missed it and he fell. And then my parents decided to 'let nature take its course'- "

"You honour!", the shocked lawyer comes in between. "The child must be confused! I think it's best to leave him alone. I protest against his presence here."

Jane gets up, too. "Your honour, in all respect… There's no proof of Dudley's supposed confusion. I find it remarkable that just because he agrees with my client, he shouldn't testify- "

"Enough, both of you!", the judge interrupts. "Dudley, do you realise what this means?"

He nods.

"Then please proceed."

Dudley confirms Harry's story for nearly all parts. His father is glaring at him, but interestingly enough, his mother doesn't. She stares at him as if she has never seen him before. Then, as he ends his testimony, she smiles at him tearfully.

Perhaps she realised her actions were wrong after all, Jane thinks. But she should have stepped up long ago. She had her chance, and she didn't take it.

"Cross-interrogation?", Judge Lawrell asks Jane.

She pauses for a second, then nods.

"Dudley… You confessed some crimes here. I would like to know why you did that?", she asks the question that has been bothering her since yesterday. Based on the look on Harry's face, he wonders about the same thing.

"I… I did something truly _wrong_. Before… Well, I wasn't nice. But Harry- Harry was not even angry, not even after I made him trip. It's such a strange thought, it just made me feel really bad. I think, to be able to go on with my life, I need to be punished. My parents need to be punished. We wronged Harry severely, and… I would just like to apologise, but that sounds so empty."

Jane nods a few times, in thought. "Thank you, Dudley. No further questions," she says. He reminds her of her younger self, when she had just escaped the Death Eaters. She had fully expected to be charged; after all, she had helped them commit countless crimes. Hell, she had helped them murder people. They used to let her ring the door bell, crying about an accident. As the people opened the door more, gesturing for her to come through, the Death Eaters would jump on them. But here's the thing: she had helped to arrest the Death Eaters, she had risked her life to steal documents out of offices to know who their next victim would be, in order to alert the Aurors. They had explained her she had been a child, held hostage; as such, the crimes she committed were not held against her.

Dudley's turn on his parents was not as dramatic, but it meant he would lose everything: his parents would go to jail, he would end up in a foster family or an orphanage, he wouldn't be a rich, pampered prince anymore. Didn't he deserve a second chance?

_I think he deserves a second chance; _Harry thinks clearly. He included her in his mental shield. That way, she could hear his thought without being exposed to all who was in the building. She nods almost imperceptibly.

"Does anyone wish to say anything else?", the judge asks calmly.

Jane stands slowly. "Miss Davidson?", the judge asks.

Exchanging a glance with Harry, she starts: "I hope you would consider an alternative punishment for Dudley- "

"Ah!", her opponent exclaims. "So that's it, yes? You tricked my client's son into lying, by saying he wouldn't be punished. You bribed him!"

She turns slowly to face him. "Oh? But if nothing happened like you claim, why would he be punished in the first place? And if he wasn't to be punished, how could I bribe him? More interesting than your unfounded allegations, the one time we did discuss this, was in prison. There's CCTV from that encounter. And I urge you to keep your unfounded nonsense for yourself, please and thank you!"

Judge Lawrell looks displeased. "Next time, only speak of your allegations if you have proof," she says harshly. "Please finish explaining, miss Davidson."

"As I came to say: Dudley doesn't deserve years in prison. He's a minor with wrong ideas, who made a severe mistake. But despite his parents attempt to _not_ let him take responsibility for that, he _did _take responsibility. He has shown regret. He has shown he is willing to improve his behaviour."

"Then what do you suggest, miss Davidson?"

"There's a mental facility, for people who have suffered in abusive homes. They always seek volunteers; just as emergency departments in hospitals. That way, we are sure he knows the effect of what he has done.", she replies.

The judge is silent for a while.

"Here's what we will do. Mr and Mrs Dursley, you are guilty of contempt of court and physical and mental abuse of a minor, entrusted to your care. -"

"We didn't even want him!", Vernon roars.

"Quiet," the judge interrupts. "He was in your care, mister Dursley. If you thought he was not rightfully there, you could have contacted court. You could have dropped him at an orphanage. You _had _options. You chose not to act upon them, but also not to take up the responsibilities that come with having a minor in the house. You spoiled your son, as we heard both from the victim, as from your son himself. A doctor has confirmed that there are detrimental effects on the minor's health. Not to mention the mental damage. And even when the facts are thrown in your face, you choose to ignore them. Not to mention your despicable way of acting after Mr Potter's fall. I hereby sentence you, Vernon Dursley, to forty years imprisonment, for the extreme neglect of a minor, possibly leading to death, common assault and contempt of court***."

"You can't do that!", he screams. He lungs at Harry, but Jane's faster, punching him hard on the nose. The guards haul him away; she sees the sad looks in both Petunia and Dudley's eyes.

"Mrs Petunia Dursley. The same goes for you. You saw what your husband did, and you did nothing; the opposite even, you did the same yourself! I want you to think hard on this: what would your sister say?"

"I'll never know that, because of him!", she screeches, pointing a finger to Harry.

"No, Mrs Dursley. You had a chance to get to know your sister, but you pushed her away. Her son didn't have that chance. He has no memories of her, because a madman murdered her in front of his eyes. You feel sorry for yourself, but you fail to realise: he has suffered more. I sentence you to thirty-five years, Mrs Dursley. I have hope for you. I'll allow your son to come see you, should he wish so."

"You can't keep my son away from me!", she screeches.

"I did not do that. You did," Judge Lawrell replies.

And Petunia is hauled away.

"Dudley… You are lucky mister Potter decided to step up for you. You will volunteer at this mental facility and the emergency room of a hospital. You can choose the latter. We will find you a foster home. I want you to think carefully, Dudley. You have been granted a second chance. Do not throw it away, or you _will_ find yourself in jail. I want you to serve there four hundred hours in total, and you'll keep the court informed of your progress. Is that clear?"

Dudley nods. "Thank you… Your honour," he mumbles.

The lawyer leaves the court with a 'we will not leave it at this', but Jane can't bring herself to care.

"Now, we have mister Potters custody to consider, haven't we?", the Judge asks kindly. "I see quite some candidates. You, sir, introduce yourself please.", she says, pointing at Sirius.

"I'm Sirius Black," he says, standing.

"Mister Black, have you been cleared of charges?", the judge asks calmly.

"No, your honour."

"Do you wish to claim guardianship when you are cleared?", the judge asks.

"I would love nothing more, but I believe Harry needs continuity. I can't care for him now. It wouldn't be fair to him."

The judge nods a few times. "I agree, mister Black. Sit down, please. Who are you?"

Remus stands. "I'm a friend of the family. I used to be good friends with James Potter."

The judge nods. "Then, do you wish guardianship?"

"I'm a werewolf, your honour. I can't give Harry what he deserves," he says sadly.

The judge nods with an unreadable expression on her face. "Other candidates?"

Jane waits patiently, and as expected, Lucius Malfoy rises.

"I'm Lucius Malfoy. I married Narcissa Black, a first cousin of Sirius Black. It would be our honour, to give The Boy Who Lived a house and a home, alongside with my son Draco Malfoy."

The judge looks a little sour. Jane knows she hates Malfoy with passion; her first cousin died in the first war, at the hands of Malfoy. She didn't take it very well when he didn't receive any punishment.

But Remus Lupin and Sirius Black get up, too. It's Remus who – unsurprisingly – takes the lead. "Your honour, although we are unable to take custody, we sought out other candidates. We found a family in the Light, who are willing to take care of Harry Potter and pledged an oath on Magic to take care of him the best way they can, and to protect him."

"And what do you think of this, mister Black? I don't want to repeat this scene in a week," the judge says.

"Your honour, I have an agreement with this family that states that if I'm found innocent, I'll have visitor's rights. But Harry would remain in their care. They think – and I agree – that Harry needs continuity in his life."

The judge looks at him, and nods again. "And who is that family?"

Silence in the room. Jane feel her heart beating faster. This is the moment, she thinks. Either her plan will work, and Harry will have a family; or she is going to have to break him out of the clutches of the Malfoys. She will _not_ leave him with _them_.

Henry slowly stands. "That would be me and my daughters, your honour," he speaks calmly – at least on the outside. Jane knows him well enough to spot the little signs of stress. Confusion rolls off in waves from Sirius and Remus.

For a short amount of time, Jane prays for a miracle. She is not afraid of what might happen then and there, but of what could happen later. How long would it take Malfoy to get in touch with some old palls and arrange an attack? Not long, she is willing to bet.

But no such luck.

"Your honour, surely you must see reason. Mister Potter and I are family, I can not allow him to stay in the hands of some stranger, clearly vulnerable for an attack."

"That could of course not happen with you mister Malfoy, after all you already got under the influence of the Imperius curse once, meaning your susceptibility to it is widely known," Jane retorts, anger flaring.

"Mister Malfoy, mind your tone. I have my own free will and my own ideas, and they might differ from yours. Miss Davidson, mind your turn to speak.", Judge Lawrell reprimands.

There's a moment of silence.

"Mister Davidson, how are you and mister Potter related?", the judge asks slowly. She knows the answer, of course; but she can't just go blabbing on old cases.

Jane slowly makes a stand; all eyes are on her. "Harry Potter is my cousin."

* * *

***** **This is because antibiotics kill of the "good" germs that live in our intestines and skin; therefore, there is less competition between "good" germs and "bad" germs, allowing the "bad" germs to take the overhand. That is only one of the reasons why taking antibiotics when it isn't required, is dangerous.**

**** Common assault is when person a encourages violence (unlawful violence) against the victim, committed by person b (here: Vernon and Petunia encourage Dudley to use violence against Harry). I'm not 100% sure I'm using the correct charges here; I am no lawyer and only used Wikipedia as background here.**

***** Lying in court is a crime, that falls under this charge. Or at least, that's what I hope.**

**Also, I'm no doctor. I'm not guaranteeing this is without mistake, though I did my best to minimize them. ALL OF THIS IS DON'T TRY THIS AT HOME.**

**Don't leave me this way: The Communards**

**Please don't go: KC and the Sunshine Band**

**All credit to the respective bands.**

**And I apparently, I got the family ties mixed up. Cousin can be used for both males and females. A niece – in English – is the daughter of a sister or brother. I apologise for my mistake, and I will correct it.**

**Next update will hopefully be in the week of 18 July. Thank you for reading!**


	22. Chapter 22: a long road to justice

**A/N: Here I am again! **

**I would like to thank Guest for his/hers review. Unfortunately, I can only reply if you are logged in. I thank you for your encouragement on this story, and I thank you for your advice. I see you point on Neville's Story… But here's the thing: I write this for readers. Neville's Story is a bit more for myself. I have been dealing with the same insecurities Neville has, and although they are better now, I feel like I need to write them off. I can't explain it to myself, so I don't have a good explication – it just feels like something I need to do.**

**To mwinter1: thank you for your continued support!**

**To everyone else who is reading this: thank you, and enjoy!**

**On to the chapter itself, and please know that you're very welcome to leave a review!**

"_**Mister Davidson, how are you and mister Potter related?", the judge asks slowly. She knows the answer, of course; but she can't just go blabbing on old cases.**_

_**Jane slowly makes a stand; all eyes are on her. "Harry Potter is my cousin."**_

* * *

**Shock is showing on nearly everyone's faces. **But Jane doesn't care about Malfoy, she looks to the only two people who didn't know (the rest is shocked she would go that far). Sirius and Remus look like they've been slapped in the face. And she knows it's because of her. More is yet to come.

But the judge wants this case over before the bomb can burst any further. "Then custody is hereby given to mister Davidson. Mister Davidson, you are to sign these papers. You too, mister Potter, mister Black, mister Lupin."

That shakes them out of their stupor.

As the paperwork is filed, Jane sneaks off. She doesn't want to have this discussion in the open. But unfortunately, the problems are not yet over.

"There, there. I'd never thought to see that face again," mister Malfoy says, in a cold way that makes her blood freeze.

But she's done. She has had it with his arrogant being. "You do remember you swore silence about what is discussed in there on your magic, do you?", she questions, feeling a small bit of satisfaction as he frowns. "I do hope the _great _mister Malfoy remembers to read what he signs."

And with that, she walks off.

Jane knows she can't stall the conversation that would surely follow. When she makes it home, she waits in the entrance hall for Harry, Sirius and Remus, and Henry.

"Henry, can you look after Harry? I think you should rest a bit," she says the moment they arrive. There's an icy silence from the other two that doesn't bode anything good.

Harry looks like he wants to object, but thankfully he thinks the better of it.

"When the fuck were you going to tell us this?", Remus exclaims. "That you and Harry are family?"

She sighs deeply. "Harry wanted to tell you immediately."

"So, he knew?", Sirius interrupts her.

"I asked him to keep it silent," she says quietly.

Suddenly, she feels very tired and alone. It must have been showing on her face, because when he continues, Remus sounds a lot calmer.

"But why?", he presses on.

"There are limited people who know. Not even Fudge knows. My boss in France knows, the head of the departments there, Harry, Henry and Lara."

"You sister? Is she Harry's cousin, too?", Remus asks quickly.

She nods.

"But why?", Sirius asks again.

She thinks for a while. "If you don't mind, I rather not speak yet of all details. What I can tell you is that my biological parents are dead," she says sadly.

Remus decides another approach. "How are you related to Harry?"

"My late mother was a sister of Lily Evans," she replies, settling down in a chair. Was she a sister, or is she a sister, even in death? She had no idea. It's a matter of opinion.

"I've never heard of her," Sirius replies.

She feels closed in, with these two taking turns in talking. "My mother fell ill at a young age. She moved to France, and attended Beauxbatons. Maybe Lily wanted to be with her, but wasn't accepted, I don't know. Maybe the possible loss of a sister at a young age tormented her. I don't know why she never told you anything about Rosemary. I truly don't."

"But why didn't you tell us? Why ask Harry to keep it between the two of you?", Remus presses on.

She stands up and walks to the closest by window, looking out of it. "I always knew Lucius Malfoy would try this, when Petunia was found unfit as a guardian. Neither of you could counter it; my family bond with Harry ensured Henry could. The fact that you rather saw him raised by an unknown family who has taken oaths then by Malfoy, convinced the judge that Malfoy was not the right choice. That would've been diminished if you knew who I was, and that we would take Harry in."

Both men nod.

"There's more to you, isn't there?", Sirius says warily.

She sighs again, deeper this time.

"I don't want to talk about it," she states firmly.

"You didn't end up directly in Henry's care. I come from an abusive home, Jane. I know how to see when someone has been abused. You jump at small sounds, your passion to be a Healer and to always help other. Shouting startles you. I can see the fear in your eyes the moment you wake up. You're guarded position. You don't trust many people. You know what that shouts to me, Jane? Abuse, even worse than Harry has suffered."

She looks at him, arms crossed. "Some truths best stay hidden, mister Black."

"You were the one who convinced me to see a Mind Healer," he replies.

A tear escapes her eye. He reminds her forcefully of Harry, who always sees right through her.

"Your point being?", she asks.

"We are here for you," Sirius says with feeling.

She can't doubt the serious grey eyes, attempting to drill holes in her head. She can't force out words, so she just nods.

Jane waits until they have taken their leave, and walks slowly towards Harry's room, trying to get her emotions under control.

Harry takes one look at her and jumps out of bed. He slowly guides her towards a chair. "That bad?", he asks, while brushing some hair out of her eyes.

"As well as to be expected," she replies.

"You should have told them about what happened after your parents' death," Harry states.

She sighs, and starts pacing. "We've had this discussion already."

"And we'll continue to have it until you see reason. Come on, Jane! Trust is the basis of every relation. How can they trust you when you are deliberately withholding important information?"

And there it is. Her problem in all the discussions they had about this. She can't deny Harry just scored a point. But still…

A knock on the door interrupts her thoughts. Sirius is there, to say goodbye to Harry; his trial will be held next week. Jane grasps his presence like a lifeline and excuses herself, while Harry attempts to drill holes in her back with his eyes.

"You look troubled," a calm voice to her left says, and Jane jumps slightly. Troubled as she was, she wasn't as attentive as usual. "Is there a problem?", Remus asks.

She hesitates, wondering how best to explain this. "Harry and I … Have a difference in opinion."

"You fought?", Remus says. He sounds surprised; Jane argues, yes, but a real fight is unlike her.

She grimaces. "It happens to the best of friends."

"That bad?", he unknowingly echoes Harry's earlier words.

She sighs. "I… The problem is I can see his point, and he is at least partially right."

"But you think you have a point, too."

"I think Harry's point scores higher," Jane replies.

Remus raises his eyebrows. "Then you simply admit he was right?", he sounds confused now.

"But what if Harry's course of action could've severe implications for a friend of ours?"

His eyes flash to Harry's door, and Jane knows Remus knows she is talking about Sirius. "That complicates matters."

She sighs. "I can't be the reason he goes back to Azkaban. I can't. I won't be able to live with myself, and, how could I?"

"It's not your fault they made that decision so may years ago," Remus states, frowning concernedly.

She smiles sadly. "If only that were true."

* * *

**It's a grim, gloomy day; Paris seems to hold its breath on the day of the trial of Sirius Black. **Because of him, the procedure is entirely in English, with auto-quills translating to French for the jury.

The jury enters the court room. Jane feels a flash of stress as the official start of the trial is given.

"Mister Poulain, your first witness, please," the judge says.

"The state would like to call Mr. Harry James Potter to the stand," the man starts.

Harry's retrieved from the witness room close to the court room and takes the oath. After the standard questions about age, profession etc., his testimony starts for real.

"You are the accused's godson?", Achille Poulain states.

"Yes, although I only found out this year," Harry replies.

"Can you explain that?"

"Yes. I was not officially informed mister Black was supposedly hunting me until late October, begin November. My Head of House then informed me of that fact. She did not inform me of the fact that he is my godfather, I found that out when I listened in to a conversation that was not meant for my ears. That was how I found out the allegations against mister Black."

"That must have been hard to hear," the man continues.

"Indeed," Harry replies as short as possible.

"When did you first encounter mister Black?"

"In the last week of June, a few months ago."

"But wasn't there an attack before that?", Achille asks confused.

"Yes, but I didn't wake before he left the tower," Harry says with a defensive edge in his voice.

"And the portrait to your tower was damaged, your friend attacked?", the prosecutor questions.

"Indeed, but Ron was unharmed. All of us were," Harry replies.

"What did the authorities say?"

Harry hesitates. "To my knowledge, they were not informed. They never questioned me, nor – to the best of my knowledge – any of my dorm mates."

Achille Poulain's eyebrows raise like they are trying to escape. "On to when you really met mister Black. What happened then?"

"He took my friend Ron through a tunnel to the Shrieking Shack. When Hermione Granger and I entered the room, mister Black had Ron's wand. I don't remember all that has been said, but it wasn't all friendly. We managed to take back Ron's and our wands – he had disarmed us when we entered – and then professor Lupin came in."

"Did you feel threatened at any point?"

Harry is silent for a moment. "It is difficult to explain. I was scared of the mass murderer everyone had told me he was. But I wasn't scared of the man in front of me, who was standing armed before three teenagers, and made no move to attack. I had the feeling I missed part of the story."

"He didn't hurt you, then? You weren't attacked?", the man sounds incredulous.

"That's correct. Well, until professor Snape came in," Harry replies calmly.

In the public, Jane suppresses a smile. It is obvious the defendant will portray Sirius like a dangerous deranged man, and Severus like a hero. But Harry telling a different story will give a whole other impression to the jury. If Severus comes in trying to play the hero, the defendant will lose part of the faith of the jury.

"Professor Snape came to rescue you," Achille states firmly.

"Did he, now? Professor Lupin, who came before him, had the situation under control. He was the only armed person there. He was talking reasonably to Sirius Black. Then professor Snape enters, tries to kick me out of school, and threatens to feed the souls of both professor Lupin and mister Black to the Dementors. Look, I'm no expert, but I can ensure you the atmosphere didn't improve. Even after Black agreed to going to Hogwarts and turning himself in, he insisted on the Dementors."

Achille pretends not to hear Harry. "And then mister Black attacked professor Snape?"

Ah, Jane thinks. At least the man realised they'd probably check the trio for mind-altering spells. Witch meant his earlier statement, about them being confounded, was invalid.

"Is that the story he goes by now? It was my understanding he claimed that we were confounded," Harry says innocently.

"Mister Snape saw the error in his assumptions," Poulain replies, sounding defensive.

"Indeed. But his story is again untrue. He was attacked by Ron, Hermione and myself."

"Why?"

"Because he threatened me with his wand in his hand. I reacted with _expelliarmus_, only with the intention to disarm, not to harm. Unfortunately, with three spells at once, professor Snape was knocked into a wall and rendered unconsciously," Harry continues calmly.

Mister Poulain looks embarrassed. "I have no further questions, your honour."

Smart man, Jane thought. Instead of bringing up that Harry arrived at the embassy injured, he chose not to draw attention, because he thought – correctly – that Sirius didn't do that. Bringing it up from his side would only make the jury chose Sirius' side.

But unfortunately for the defendant, Peter knows that, too. "Mister Potter, it was my understanding that you arrived at the embassy injured without mister Lupin. Can you explain how that happened?"

"Yes. Mister Black agreed to walk to the castle to turn himself in. The moon was up, and since mister Lupin is a werewolf, he transformed. He ran into the forest. The Dementors attacked us, and I repelled them with the Patronus charm. Hence my exhaustion, and I simply passed out."

"Objection! The Patronus charm is NEWT level. How and where did mister Potter learn this charm?"

"Can you answer the question, mister Potter?", the judge said.

"Certainly. I learned it during private lessons with mister Lupin, at the time the DADA teacher at Hogwarts."

"Objection overruled," the judge stated. "Save it for the interrogation of mister Lupin."

Harry walked out of the witness' stand. The morning continued with the testimony of Remus from that night. His account agreed with Harry's, and Ron's and Hermione's written ones (since the prosecutor never thought the defendant would agree to having both the trial about that Halloween night and the trial about what happened since he escaped, they had not asked Ron or Hermione to be present, only to write their statements to have an overview of what happened). Again, both Harry and Jane noted that no questions about the night the Potters died were asked. Snape's testimony would conclude the morning. As expected, he gave an entirely different version of the events. He stated that Black had attacked him when he turned his back to him, that he was keeping an eye on Potter (hence him being there). All in all, it was all Potters fault, that was his conclusion. He was out of bounds, despite the threat to his life. The cross-interrogation by Peter was more interesting.

"Mister Snape, you went to school together with mister Black. How would you describe him?"

"Black was an arrogant thing. Always picking on those who annoyed him, or when he was just bored, on everyone. Always ogling girls. He was insolent. He proved he was capable of murder at a young age- "

"What do you mean by that?", Peter asked calmly.

"Lupin is a werewolf. I asked him once were Lupin went once in a month, and he told me of the tunnel that lead to the Shrieking Shack. He wanted to kill me, they all wanted that, the arrogant little things. Always thought they were better than everyone else."

He was on his high horse, now, Jane thought. He wasn't thinking about the jury.

"Is that so? You believe mister Lupin was in on that, that he knew what was going to happen?"

"Yes."

"Do you have proof of that?"

A reluctant 'no' followed.

"But you weren't attacked. What happened?"

"Potter senior backed out, he pulled me back – but not before I caught a glimpse of that beast."

Peter pretends to be confused. "Mister Snape, you said my client attempted to kill you. And yet, he only told you how to enter the tunnel. Not to use it."

A long pause. It was clear that Peter was correct, but Snape wouldn't admit it.

"Either way," Peter continues, "it must have been hard, to teach alongside the person who allegedly had tried to kill you. And then you were confronted with the man who made it all possible. At the exact place where you were nearly killed so many year ago. That would affect everyone's decisions."

"It did not!", Snape hissed aggressively.

"Black agreed to surrender. Why did you insist on involving the Dementors?"

"There was a kiss-on-sight order- "

"Witch was not yours to execute. The process of surrendering overrules that order. Were you going to subject three thirteen-year olds to witnessing that, by the way?"

"I'm no lawyer. I didn't know. And if Potter couldn't handle it, he shouldn't have been there in the first place," Snape says aggressively.

"So, it's all Potter senior and Potter junior fault?"

Dead silence. It was clear he couldn't say yes to that; attacking a dead man wouldn't be good, in front of the jury. Snape was in control once more. He must have realised how petty he sounded.

"Would you change your course of action?", Peter asks.

"Of course not!", the man scoffs. "It was obviously a trick."

"Based on what?"

"Black would never surrender."

"Based on your own, biased opinion. Biased because you believe he tried to kill you. How can you judge objectively?"

"There's no need for that," Snape spites. "Black would have gotten what he should have gotten so many years ago."

Peter thanks him for his answer.

Jane looks at Harry, who is looking down sadly. She knows it hits him hard, what Snape just said – just because it was all said in spite. But juridically speaking, they had scored a point; Snape had just admitted that he thought Black should have been dead already, and that he couldn't look further then what he saw as an attempt on his life. Jane had no idea what to believe. She couldn't believe four teenagers were allowed to plot attempted murder, thus that part had to be untrue. But she also couldn't see Sirius just telling Snape their long-kept secret, that tunnel. She was definitely missing a part of the puzzle. She wondered about it during lunch, but couldn't find any answers.

After lunch, more testimonies of Hogwarts professors followed. None of them had much to say that was relevant: Sirius Black had been friends with James Potter, Peter Pettigrew and Remus Lupin. He had entered the castle once, on Halloween; all that had happened was a painting being slashed. While destruction of property was also an offence, Achille Poulain didn't focus too much on it. After all, he was trying to go for murder of Peter Pettigrew, terrorism, and involuntary manslaughter by gross criminal neglect on Lily and James Potter; combined with attempted murder on Harry Potter. Why he didn't add Hermione and Ron to the list was something none of them understood. Those testimonies concluded the first day of trial. Harry, Henry, Jane, Peter and Remus all went to a house Jane owned in France; Sirius was sent back to prison.

The next day was death boring, Jane thought privately. All that happened were officials talking about how they noticed Harry Potter had disappeared, at the end of the school year. She could imagine the panic that came with it when Snape reported that Harry was last seen in the presence of a supposed mass murderer. Prime minister Fudge had reacted like Jane had expected him to react: he had immediately taken measure to find Harry, and keep the press at bay. After all, losing The Boy Who Lived would've broken his career. Madame Bones, as head of the DMLE, was on scene roughly around midnight. She did the smart thing: she sent out search parties (for in case they were still on the castle grounds), made sure no one could get off the terrain unnoticed and had researchers come to try to find out what happened. It had been reported to her, at approximately one P.M., that a Portkey had been used near the lake shore. Each Portkey, she explained, has a signature, thus allowing identification. The Portkey was registered to the French embassy, and that, she explained, was a problem: they had no jurisdiction there. Prime Minister Fudge took along a team for his security – Jane had to suppress a laugh there; he'd wanted to start the search without the DMLE, to be able to claim that he had personally found and rescued Harry – and went to talk to the ambassador. The next morning, madame Bones concluded her testimony, she was informed that Harry and his class mates were safe, and that Black had asked asylum. The PM had taken over the case from there, and it was him who kept in touch with French authorities.

Peter didn't have many questions for her.

"Madame Bones, did any of your men report signs of a fight or struggle?", he asks politely.

"Other than in the Shrieking Shack, no."

"And that was caused by the fight between professor Snape on one side, and mister Potter, miss Granger and mister Weasley on the other side?"

"That's possible. There's no evidence of that, but none against it."

"Thank you. Is it customary for the PM to get involved?"

"The case was delicate. Mister Potter has quite the reputation, making him a target. Minister Fudge was on the scene when the events transpired; he felt responsible. When the embassy was involved, it turned to a potential political catastrophe. I have no jurisdiction there, so he went."

"But he hasn't any jurisdiction, either."

"No," she agreed, "but he knows the ambassador, of course."

"Are you saying he was worried for her safety?", Peter asked cautiously.

"Indeed," madame Bones said.

"Good. I was suddenly worried you meant that he hoped to resolve matters, without involving the necessary authorities."

She didn't say anything to that. Perhaps she didn't want to speak against her boss, or maybe she just didn't know. She had the ultimate poker face. Peter asked her his last question.

"Did you ever sent the documents of mister Black's trial to mister Poulain, over there?", he asked calmly.

"No. Minister Fudge said he would take care of that," she replied suspiciously. She clearly didn't know about the lack of trial.

The rest of the day was spent on a – way too deep, in Jane's opinion – analysis of the opinions of the experts that had searched Hogwarts. At four P.M. they had all agreed that it was strategy: they had obviously realised that after the testimonies of Harry, Lupin, Ron, Hermione and madame Bones, they wouldn't be able to press on with the attempted murder on the trio. Thus, they tried to put a distance between that, and the murder on the Potters. They tried to fill time, to make the jury forget about this first part of the trial. It was a risky thing to do; they would have gained more sympathy if they simply admitted their mistake. But they filled the second day with those useless testimonies, because _the_ Achille Poulain couldn't admit making a mistake.

At the end of the day, they were all tense and tired. Henry, Harry and Jane knew what was about to happen, and neither was particularly happy about it: they would talk about the Potter's death next. And Jane would form the link between them. As Jane expected, Harry made one last, desperate move to persuade her not to testify. Jane had done her best to evade him since the moment they arrived home, something that didn't go unnoticed.

"There you are," Harry said, "We need to talk – and stop evading me, would you?"

She sighed deeply. "I don't want to discuss it. My choice has been made. Period. Full stop. Case closed."

"Then just listen. Come on, Jane, humour me!", he pleaded. She said nothing, but didn't leave either. "You know how dangerous testifying will be. The more you speak about it, the more secrets tend to come out."

"I know," she said sadly.

"You know what it will do to you, reliving that."

She looked away, through the window. The house was isolated as it could be; there was nothing to see but green in the area. "Yes," she agreed. "But can't you see not doing it is not an option?"

"Why? Why do you always have to sacrifice yourself? Now you _have _a choice. But you don't- "

"What can I do? Not testifying? You know better than anyone what the risks of that are, Harry – I might as well send Sirius back there myself."

"It will destroy you," he whispered. "I've already allowed for that to happen once. I can't make it twice."

"But it's not your choice! It's not your problem- "

"HOW CAN YOU SAY THAT!", he yelled, letting out all insecurity and stress through anger. "HOW CAN YOU DO THIS TO HENRY, TO LARA, TO ME?"

"THEN WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO DO, HARRY? MAKE A CHOICE I KNOW I WON'T BE ABLE TO LIVE WITH? BECAUSE YOU KNOW THAT THAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN," she yelled right back, losing her temper. The fact that she hadn't slept well ever since Sirius Black had appeared in the atrium didn't help.

"How can you ask me to stand by and watch you destroy yourself?!", he shot back.

"Don't you see, nothing can prevent that now! Testifying or not," she groaned. It was the dilemma she had been struggling with for so long.

"It's not your fault. Sirius wouldn't blame you- "

"No. I would," she finally turned around, tears in her eyes. "I don't know what to do anymore, Harry. There's no clean way out. Thus, I take the road with the least hitches."

"It's not! It's the road that eases the guilt you always felt! But it won't work, Jane. You can't just erase what happened!", he yelled. He saw her face pale and muscles twitch, and instantly knew he'd said the wrong thing. "Jane- "

"Get out," she whispered frostily, pain evident in her voice. "Get out! OUT OUT OUT OUT OUT!", she screamed.

He left.

She slid down onto the floor, crying loudly, for the first time she could remember. When she was young, they had insisted on not crying – so she learned to do it silently. It was a habit she couldn't break, until now, apparently.

Jane looked up when the door opened slowly, to show a concerned Remus. "You all right?"

"Fine," she replied while whipping her eyes. Under his sceptical look, she sighed and attempted a weak smile. "No, not so fine actually."

"I heard the fight," Remus admitted hesitantly, kneeling before her. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"Can't," she replied curtly, feeling guilty for being so short with him. It wasn't his fault, she thought, covering her eyes and sighing.

"Can I do something for you?", he asked quietly.

She thought for a second or two. "Can you get Henry? And check in on Harry?"

He stared at her for a moment, incredulously, before laughing out loud.

"What?", she asked curiously.

"You really reminded me of Lilly there. Such… empathy. I normally see it in Harry, too."

She sighed. "One day, you'll understand."

He nodded and made to leave. "Remus?", she said, waiting until he turned around, "If you don't want to see me after that, I'll understand. But keep in mind: Harry won't be so easy to convince to stay away from me." He raised an eyebrow, but said nothing, just nodded and left. It wasn't long, before Henry entered. He studied her face for a while, before sitting down next to her.

"I take it you both vented a bit?", he asked quietly.

She smiled weakly. "A bit."

He looked at her. "Whatever he said that upset you, he didn't mean it like that."

"He said I can't erase what happened," she replied. The comment still stung.

"He meant that you can't put your safety at risk, just because you feel guilty – unrightfully so, I might add. He didn't mean that it doesn't matter what you do, he'll never be able to forgive you. He _has _forgiven you. We all have. You're the only stubborn one."

She looked down and nodded a bit. "Sounds like me," she said.

Henry puts an arm around her, and she leaned into his side, still crying. It took about half an hour, before her sobs subsided. Looking at her, he saw she felt asleep. "My beautiful girl," he whispered. "I hope one day your demons stop hunting you, and you'll realise there's nothing to forgive you, because you've done nothing wrong. I pray for that every day. Sleep tight, my sweet."

He carried her to bed and went to search Harry.

* * *

**Harry had fled to his bedroom after the fight.** He still couldn't see why what he'd said was so hurtful, but he certainly hadn't mean it that way. Part of him wanted to go back and apologise, but he knew they both needed time. He needed to think about what to say. He was that deep in thought, he didn't notice Remus Lupin entered.

"That was a nasty fight," he remarked.

Harry jumped a bit, then looked down. "How much did you hear?"

"All of it," Remus replied.

Harry nodded silently, staring out of the window in a way that reminded Remus of Jane a few moments earlier.

"Do you want to talk about it?", Remus asked, moving to stand next to him, looking out of the window, too.

"No," Harry replied. After a moment of thinking, he said: "I never meant to upset her like that. I'll apologise."

Remus nodded a bit. "You should."

Harry smiled a bit mournfully. "I shouldn't have let this build up so long."

Remus turned to him. "What was that all about?"

Harry sighed deeply. "Jane and I have a different opinion."

"So much I've gathered, thank you," Remus replied dryly, "about her testimony?"

Harry remained silent for a while. He couldn't tell Remus exactly what was going on, but he could tell the gist of it. "Jane… Knows something that could change the course of the trial."

"But?", Remus prodded when he fell silent.

"But … When some people know she knows that - that something, they'll be… unpleased, shall we say."

"You fear for her safety," Remus surmises.

Harry inclines his head. "It's so… difficult. Sirius would never ask this of her. I know that _something_, too; I know Sirius would never ask her to tell it. But on the other hand, Jane has a right to make this decision herself. But she doesn't hold her life as high in regard as I would like- "

"Her life?! You mean to tell me this could get her killed?"

Harry remains silent for a while. "The embassy is well protected. But some people would rather see her dead, when they know that she knows that something."

Remus eyes him incredulously. "How long have you been holding onto this?"

"The moment I regained consciousness in the embassy and didn't escape with Sirius, despite her giving me the possibility to do so."

"Have you talked to Henry?"

"Talked to me about what?", Henry asks from the door opening.

Harry remained silent, thus Remus replies for him. "The fact that he fears for Jane's safety after she testifies."

Henry nodded a bit and sighed. "I know. We do what we can to keep her safe, Harry; you know that. But I can't guarantee anything, and therein lies the problem, doesn't it?"

Harry nodded, still staring out of the window. "How is she?"

"She fell asleep after crying her heart out," Henry said a little sharply.

Harry sighed, and rubbed his tired eyes. "Do you have an idea what set her of the edge?"

Henry studied him for a while. "When you said that 'you can't just erase what happened', she thought you meant that no matter what she did, you could never forgive her."

Harry cursed under his breath, which earned him a reproachful look of Remus that he didn't notice. "I didn't mean that! I meant that she shouldn't risk her life, just to try and set things right."

Henry smiled sadly. "The only reason I didn't start shouting – you didn't mean it that way. But Harry, you have thought about this for a long time, haven't you?". At Harry's nod, he continued: "Look at it from her point of view. She knows the dangers, but this is her chance to show people she's different than those egoistic people – despite all that happened- "

"But she doesn't have to show it, we know it!", Harry rebuked.

Henry sighed. "Yes, we do. But she hasn't proven it to herself. And that's the real reason she was that upset – she still thinks of herself as one of them."

"Then what happens, she just randomly starts killing people?!", Harry exclaimed. "That's nonsense!"

"We all know that. But Jane needs to feel it," Henry replied calmly.

Harry sighed even more deeply. "I thought it was about faith – that she didn't trust my judgement enough, and that she thought I didn't trust hers."

Henry studies him for a while. "Go to bed, Harry. Apologise tomorrow. And yes, trust is part of it; but not all of it."

They bid each other goodnight, and Remus and Henry leave together.

"You sure you want Jane to testify tomorrow?", Remus asks. At Henry's raised eyebrows, he adds: "her safety… Harry mentioned he thought others would try to kill her- "

Henry shook his head while interrupting him. "That's not the entire truth – Jane has had mental issues. Harry's worried for a relapse of those, not unrightfully so, I might add. But sometimes, you need to set your personal interest aside, for the general interest. Jane feels she should do this very strongly; I can't bring myself to stop her from doing that." And with that, he left Remus.

The next morning, Harry sat across Jane's room at 6 o'clock, waiting patiently. The door opened around seven, and she raised her eyebrows.

"I do hope you didn't sleep here," she said.

Harry shook his head. "Can we talk?"

She gestured for him to come in.

"Jane, I apologise for what I said last night. I meant you shouldn't risk your life just to try and set things right, because you feel guilty about what you did when you were with those Death Eaters. It's not your fault. But that's not why I came. I don't want you to testify because of the dangers, because of what I said earlier and because I don't believe it necessary. I came to here why you think you should testify."

She let go of her breath she'd been holding. "Because it's the right thing to do. To prove to myself I'm not like these egoistic Death Eaters. Because if I had just talked after I got to Great-Britain, if I told who I was and what I'd seen, maybe Sirius would have had a trial. I… I just feel like this is something I need to do. I never spoke about it before; even in the mental facility I just wrote about it, but never spoke about it. I need to be able to tell what happened, to come to peace with it; I'll never be able to do that just because _I _need it – it'll bring so much distress to those around me…", she trailed off.

Harry sighed. "I know it doesn't matter to you, I know you won't believe it – but we do know you're nothing like those Death Eaters, Jane. Nothing at all. But okay, if this is what you want… 'you have my blessing' sounds strange… But I support you, okay? I'll be doing cross-interrogation about that, so I'll go easy."

She nodded. He smiled. "Time to get ready, Jane. Time to show them the truth."

* * *

**It wasn't much later when they found themselves in the court room, for the third day of Sirius' trial.** Jane sat in her seat in the back of the court room, eyeing Harry on his front row. She swallowed. She really wasn't looking forward to this; she _never _talked about this. It's for the good cause, she reminded herself. You know what happens if they find Sirius' guilty – he'll be back in Azkaban. How long before Harry does something rash to break him out?

Mister Poulain stood. "We would like to call ambassador Jane Davidson to the stand."

She took a slow, deep breath, and walked to the stand. He started off easy – how long was she in this position, why only now, etc. But then it started.

"Miss Davidson, were you there when mister Black, mister Potter, mister Weasley and miss Granger arrived?"

"Yes," she replied. "They were all unconscious. I checked up on mister Potter while the Healers were tending to the rest of them. Once I realised that mister Black was there, I had him secured outside the Hospital Ward."

"But you didn't contact the British government?"

"No. I wanted to be certain. It could be an imposter under Polyjuice Potion, while the real mister Black was waiting outside until we lowered our defences, to allow the British in," she replied. It wasn't a lie, but it wasn't the entire truth either.

"What happened after that?"

"I talked to mister Black when he was awake. He said he was innocent."

Achille Poulain raises an eyebrow. "Did he elaborate on that?"

"No. I got word the English PM had dropped by unannounced and went to meet him, so mister Black didn't have the chance."

Poulain nods. "And after that?"

"We talked for a bit – there was a bit of a discussion about minister Fudge wanting to search the grounds, but that would be a breach of our integrity – and then I got word that mister Black had requested asylum, for fearing unrightful imprisonment."

Achille decides to start another topic. He wants to end with the dramatic climax. "Where mister Potter, mister Weasley or miss Granger injured?"

"Yes. All of them had been exposed to Dementors, mister Potter even nearly being kissed," she said, ignoring the murmurs in the room, "and mister Potter had a case of mild magical exhaustion."

"According to you, what happened to them?"

She sighed. "I'm not an expert, but based on the opinions I've asked from Healers, they think that mister Potter fend off the Dementors with a corporal Patronus. Hundreds of them."

"Miss Davidson," he says – time for the climax! – this wasn't the first time you saw mister Black, was it?"

"No. I went along with Prime Minister Fudge on an inspection of Azkaban," she says. Jane knows that it's not what he wants to hear, and stalling will help no one; and yet, she can't help herself.

Achille Poulain decides on another approach. "Miss Davidson – that's not your real name, is it?"

"No. It's Arya. Arya Johnson," Jane replies. "I'm in the witness protection project."

Achille pretends to be surprised. "And why is that?", he asks, ready to rebuke any comments from the defendant he knows are coming – only they don't.

"My mother is – was – Rosemary Evans, sister of Lily Evans. When Voldemort went after the Potters, and when he realised, they were well protected, he sought someone who might know more about their protections. He found my parents here in France. My mother, then ambassador, helped fugitives out of Britain alongside the Potters. They held close contact; as such my mother knew where they were hiding and with which protective charms. When Voldemort came to our house, they obliviated themselves. I was there, too; my three-years old sister was with friends. I couldn't go, because I was a little feverish. Voldemort abducted our entire family. I don't know why, but I was taken, too. He tortured my parents for the location and name of the protective charms the Potters used. They couldn't give it, because they obliviated themselves." Jane takes a moment to steady herself, and eyes Remus. Based on the look of disgust and horror on his face, he can already guess what is coming. Sirius looks at her sadly; maybe he didn't realise yet what is bound to happen in her story. "Voldemort truly needed the location. My father had died due to a heart condition. My mother was alive, but he couldn't afford to lose her, and she knew that. Thus, he tortured me instead," she whispers.

Shouts of outrage echo through the court room, but she pays them no mind. She watches Remus, who eyes her sadly; she watches Sirius, who looks at her in horror and shock; she watches Henry and Harry, who nod encouragingly. Loudly, the Judge demands silence.

When the order is restored, she continues. "I was a year old, when this happened. The Cruciatus Curse is based on building the illusion of pain in the brain, thus causing agony. My brain was still developing and couldn't take the curse. I suffered some brain damage. In the brain of such a young child, the ends of the neurons – which built up the brain – are still relatively supple. They are called axons; and they can still change position, to some extent. The only positions that remain are those that are frequently used. The curse destroyed some fragile connections. Because of the relative flexibility of my brain then, new connections were formed. Only, some of them are not meant to be made. Hence my ability to read minds, to see auras and emotions, to project shields, to remember everything."

She takes a break, and Achille nods encouragingly. "At some point, my mother broke and tried to say the address, but she couldn't. That's probably because of the Fidelius' charm that had been set in place. I don't know that for sure, but based on the timeline… Anyway, Voldemort got angry when he realised, she couldn't say it. I saw in his head and emotions he would kill her and shouted a warning, but it was too late; he killed her. After so many days of no sleep, torture, she just couldn't move in time. But that warning saved my life; he realised I had some tricks up my sleeve, and decided to keep me."

Achille nods, and tries to put on a concerned face; he doesn't entirely pull it off to hide his triumph. "Did you hear the person who betrayed the Potters?"

The room seems to collectively hold its breath. "Yes. I was still in the room when the betrayer entered, told the secret. They immediately left for the Potter's house."

The man nods. "And would you recognise that man's or woman's voice?" Achille Poulain waits again for an objection that doesn't come.

"Yes," she says softly, looking directly at Sirius, who is by now openly crying. Remus is looking down, shoulders suspiciously shaking. Henry places a hand on his shoulder.

"Miss Evans – or Davidson, whichever you prefer – was it Sirius Black's voice?", he can't keep the tension out of his own voice anymore.

She looks at Achille Poulain. "No," she says.

Shock breaks out at the prosecutor's table. "Are you sure?", he asks desperately. "Perhaps you are mistaken?"

She shakes her head determinedly. "No, it wasn't him. That man's voice was higher, less sure of himself. It's a difference that, according to experts, is different to mimic."

Achille Poulain is trapped. He addresses the judge. "You honour, this is a complete surprise."

But now Peter stands, too. "You honour, this is only a surprise because mister Poulain never asked the witness prior to this day if she recognised my client. That's not her fault; have mercy on this fourteen-year old who has just relived a tragedy. Let her finish her testimony now, and recover from this."

The judge thinks for a minute. "Miss Davidson – or Johnson – let me remind me you are still under oath," he waits until she nods, "did mister Poulain ask for an identification prior to this day?"

"No, he only asked if I was sure of what I've heard," she says, repressing a smirk. That's what you get from being hasty.

"Then continue, mister Poulain," the judge decides.

But Achille is a quick thinker, and he continues without hesitating. "Miss Davidson, what happened after that?"

She represses the urge to hit him in his arrogant face. Just because she didn't agree with him, he's now going to portray her as a complete lunatic. But the jury won't appreciate it; either. Again, he chooses to maintain his reputation, rather than telling the jury he was wrong.

"Voldemort didn't return from the Potters," she says, proudly nothing that the previous wobble in her voice disappeared, "but he'd left his instructions: I would serve them. The Death Eaters stayed in a manor that belonged to the Lestranges. I did, too. They gave me food and shelter, and tried to instil their pureblood supremacy believes in me. A couple of English werewolves had come with them. If I questioned them too much, or later when I was older and started to rebel, they would hit me with cutting charms and look me up in the shed with them. They would have me with them when the werewolves attacked English and French villages. I saw people die at theirs and those Death Eater's hands. But like I said, I started to rebel. Once, I got out long enough to inform the Aurors. I went back to gather evidence against everyone present. I was undercover for a year. By the time I was seven, the manor was raided after I weakened its protections enough to allow the Aurors in. I was first sent to an orphanage. But my sister, who was with friends on the night of the attack, was in a foster family in the UK. She told them about their sister, and they filled a missing person report with the French authorities. When I was in the orphanage, they did a DNA test and found out we were sisters. I went to the same foster family as Lara."

Achille Poulain nods a bit. "That must have had quite the impact on you, dear child."

She curses under her breath. If she says no, she will sound like an insensitive bitch; if she says yes, he'll portray her as a lunatic. "Yes," she replies curtly.

"And after that, your foster mother died, didn't she?", he asks.

She narrows her eyes at him. "I don't see how that's relevant, but yes," she replies.

"Did it occur to you that that might have been done by Sirius Black?", he asks pleasantly.

She stares at him in shock and confusion. She hadn't expected him to be so desperate he would go with far-fetched theories. "No, there was no evidence for that."

"Perhaps he payed someone to do this?", he prods.

"Objection!", Peter says, rising. "There is no proof of such a thing. It's speculation."

Before the judge can reply, the man apologises and proceeds like nothing has happened.

"After that, you spend some time in a mental institute, is that correct?"

"Yes," she admits reluctantly.

"No further questions, your honour," he concludes.

Jane lets go a sigh of relief as a break for lunch is denounced. No one notices the small figure quickly making it to the door of the court room in the common hectic such an announcement causes; no one notices the rarely used back door the building has opening for a small figure, who sped onto the streets to make a phone call.

* * *

"**You won't find her here," Harry says to Remus, who was scanning the crowds before entering the room were Sirius was in.**

"That was why you didn't want her to testify, wasn't it?", Remus asks.

"Yes. We knew it would end like this, with Poulain trying to portray her like mad. But he provided us the means to allow her mind healer to testify about her mental state of health, so rebuking that won't be a problem- "

"That's not what we are talking about!", Sirius interrupts him. "The Death Eaters will want her head! She knows to much about their weaknesses and identities to be left alone!"

Harry shakes his head already. "We knew that."

Remus curses under his breath. "The sacrifices that this girl has made, sweet Merlin. How she is so relatively normal is beyond me."

Harry smiles gruffly. "You're not the only one," he replies.

"Why does she think I wouldn't want to see her now I know this? I've got to admit, I admire her strength and will power more than ever," Remus asks.

Harry raises his eyes to the ceiling. "Jane is convinced that, by spending so many time with the Death Eaters, she is dangerous. She thinks she might be a danger to all of us. She had always feared that one day she would turn against us; she can't understand people see it differently."

"That's bullshit," Sirius says. Remus nods in agreement.

Harry raises his eyebrows. "Do me a favour, tell her that."

Lunch break was only an hour long, and after that, the defence did a short cross-interrogation of Jane.

"Miss – we've heard many names," Harry starts of mildly, "witch do you prefer?"

"Davidson," she replies, smiling faintly.

"Miss Davidson, about your mental health – is there anything else you would like to be known?"

"Yes. I have here, with me, the conclusions of my personal mind healer. It says that I'm sane and that I have no delusions." She hands over the paper to the Judge.

"Why didn't you say that to mister Poulain, over there?", Harry asks, pretending to be surprised.

"I did," she replied, "before I was allowed to testify, he asked – for in case the defence tried to portray me like a lunatic." That was a smart move, she thought. They had now proven that Achille had known very well she was sane, but had tried to make the jury believe otherwise, because he didn't want them to believe what she said.

"No further question, your honour," Harry says. The other side is surprised – they'd thought Harry would try more to portray her better, as they thought they would score the next part – little did they know that wouldn't be the case.

The rest of the day consist of various officials, who came to the street Sirius supposedly blew up after the death of the Potters. Most of them didn't have much to say; they'd interrogated witnesses – all Muggles. Harry asked them all the same question: did the person have a clear view on the drawn wands? The answer was always no. Did they attend the trial? The answer was also no. That made only sense; after all, the people who stood close enough to have a good visual, where dead. Most of them heard what Pettigrew said, but hey, anyone could say that. The only other remotely interesting testimony was the one Fudge gave. He blabbed on and on and on, but his story could be briefly summarised: they'd had an alert about a catastrophe involving Muggles. Upon arriving, they'd arrested Sirius Black, who didn't resist. They'd questioned and obliviated the Muggles, who all said the same thing: Black had blown up the street, killing Pettigrew and several Muggles.

"Minister Fudge, good afternoon," Harry starts. "A few quick questions. Did you check mister Black's wand?"

Fudge looks guilty. "The circumstances were clear- "

"Would the witness answer the question!", the Judge thunders from above him. Politicians; always avoiding the question.

"Eh – no. We thought- "

"Minister Fudge, your job wasn't to think, but to investigate," Harry talks over him. "Did mister Black confess, to your knowledge?"

"Not right then and there, no," he mumbles.

"Have you made it to his trial, minister?"

Fudge looks around sheepishly. "No…"

"No? Thank you for your answer," Harry concludes. Panic on the other side of the court room; they'd thought he would've been bickering for longer.

The prosecutor rests his case, shaking his head. All he can do now is hope he can rebuke the testimonies of the defendant.

Only, there wasn't much to rebuke. A few old friends of Sirius testified; all they said was that James Potter and Sirius Black were like brother, that they were shocked beyond believe that he'd ratted them out. They couldn't believe it; but then they were presented with the fact that he was off to Azkaban, and they never received word he was _not_ guilty. It had been such a dark time for all of them; they just wanted to celebrate the fall of the Dark Lord – and then, they just assumed there had been a trial and Sirius was found guilty. But none of them had ever testified.

The next day started of more exiting, with the interrogation of the person who should've provided them all with the paperwork around Sirius' arrest and trial. Of course, there was not much of that, and it was a brief testimony. Next up was Remus' testimony, who talked a bit about his friend Sirius, who had been an energetic young man, always fighting to do the right thing, and trying to protect his friends.

"Mister Lupin, how did your friends react when they found out you are a werewolf?", Harry asks calmly.

"I'd expected them to turn their backs on me, but nothing of sorts. It was Sirius who started researching things that could help me; it was Sirius who found out that animals could calm a werewolf down. James and Sirius then researched what would happen if they could become Animagi; and then they and Peter trained to become one."

"Objection! There's no registration of that on the official list!", Achille Poulain shouts.

"The witness can explain that," Harry replies.

The judge motioned for him to do so; and Remus explained that they were to young to transform when they started. The ministry didn't allow it. When they were of age, there was a war raging. They had an advantage, and they wanted to keep it secret.

After that follows a brief testimony of professor Dumbledore; who admits telling the ministry that he thought Sirius was the Secret Keeper. He amends that he mentioned that he wasn't present when the spell was performed, as Lily had insisted to do it herself. He admitted that it was possible the Secret Keeper was changed.

"The defence would like to call Sirius Black to the stand," Harry states. He is the final witness, and rumours erupt everywhere: it's very uncommon that the accused himself testifies, as he can be cross-interrogated by the prosecutor, which isn't allowed if he doesn't testify. Veritaserum is administered with the consent of the accused, and a Healer confirms he's under its influence.

"Mister Black, were you the Secret Keeper of the Potters?"

"No," he replies.

"Who was?", Harry asks, feigning surprise. On the other side, Achille Poulain tries to disappear behind his table.

"Peter Pettigrew," Sirius says.

"Is that why you hunted him down?"

"Yes."

"What happened when you found him?"

"He began yelling I'd betrayed Lily and James, drew his wand behind his back, and pointed a fire spell at the ground. The gas line was hit and I only just managed to perform a Protego. Before the dust settled, he had transformed into a rat and dove into the sewers."

"You stayed. Why?"

"I was stricken that _I _had indirectly helped my friend's murderer escape by teaching him how to become an Animagus. I was shell shocked… I just found my friend and his wife death in their house, while I thought they were safe. I had told them to switch… It was bluff. And all those innocent deaths; I'd wanted to prevent them by appointing Peter as the Secret Keeper, while I in fact caused them."

The prosecutor declines cross-interrogation. Achille Poulain tried in his final statement to convince the jury that Sirius Black had knowingly switched to Peter. He tried to convince them that Sirius had been a Death Eater, knew that Peter was the same. When he switched Secret Keepers, he could pretend to be innocent.

But Achille Poulain failed, for the first time in his career.

The decision of the jury only took five hours. "We, the jury, find the accused, Sirius Black, innocent on all charges."

Cheers erupted from the defendant side. An innocent man had been freed.

* * *

**Achille Poulain is my first word joke – Achille is the French version of Achillus, the man from the Greek mythology (you know, the one who had only one vulnerable spot, on his heel). Poulain is French for 'foal' (and more specifically, a colt or male foal). This man has a tendency to be impulsive and reckless. The same is said of colts. Achille Poulain's weak spot is his arrogance – which will lead to his fall in this trial.**

**Sorry for the delay – this chapter is longer, but I wanted to be done with this trial. See you in two weeks! (or earlier in a review, hopefully…)**


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N: Last chapter was twice as long as normally, because I really, really wanted this blasted trial out of the way. I have zero knowledge of the legal world, and what I do know comes from Wikipedia. I apologise to each and every one of you who was bored with this trial, but I firmly believe I could not **_**not**_** do it. When you personally know an ambassador, who wouldn't ask for help when you find out your Godfather was falsely accused of murder and whatnot?**

**Anyway – we continue were we left off last time, and hopefully, this will be written a little bit better. This trial really didn't go down well… Also, I'm going to be playing a bit with the POV and times – I hope it stays clear what's happening.**

* * *

_Summary so far (chronologically):_

_Previous to this story: Lilly Evans had two sisters, Petunia and Rosemary. Rosemary was born prematurely in France, and was therefore automatically on the list of Beauxbatons. Because of a lung disease, she rarely visited England after she turned eleven, but she kept in touch with her sisters. Around the time of Lily's and James' marriage, Rosemary married, too, with Sam Johnson. Not so much later, the first Wizarding War erupted to the fullest. Rosemary, being a Muggleborn herself and ambassador for France in magical Britain, wanted to do something. She and Lily started to smuggle Muggleborns out of Britain to France, financed by James Potter. Two years before Harry Potter was born, Rosemary and Sam had a child, Mary Johnson (in story name: Lara, see below). A month before Harry Potter was born, Rosemary and Sam had an another child, Arya Johnson (in story name: Jane, see below)._  
_The Potters were notified that Voldemort was after them, and hid in the same year Harry (and Jane) were born. They used common wards and protective spells for their house, but not yet the Fidelius charm – they needed to research that more. A year later, two weeks before Halloween, Voldemort found out about Rosemary and Sam. He knew that they knew were the Potter were hiding, because they still smuggled Muggleborns. He attacked the house were Rosemary and Sam lived with their children. Mary Johnson (Lara), had gone to a sleepover at a friend's. Voldemort abducted Rosemary, Sam and Arya (Jane). When it was discovered what had happened, Mary Johnson was given up for adoption, and later adopted by Henry and Myriam (in Great-Britain). They decided to change her name to Lara, for her safety. Unfortunately, the friends Mary/Lara was residing with were Muggles, and didn't know the true identities of Rosemary and Sam. Mary/Lara couldn't remember their names either, leaving the authorities with empty hands._  
_Meanwhile, Voldemort tortured Sam, Rosemary and later even Arya (Jane), although the latter was only a year old. Sam and Rosemary had had the chance to obliviate themselves. They had no hope to escape or survive, so they tried to protect Lily and James. Sam died under torture, soon after their capture. A week after their capture, and a week before Halloween, Lily and James noticed something was wrong. They decided to use the Fidelius charm, with Peter Pettigrew as Secret Keeper. Voldemort was busy torturing Jane and Rosemary, when he got word from Peter Pettigrew himself, who betrayed the Potters right then and there, under Jane's nose. Voldemort killed Rosemary, but he noticed that Jane had some powers of her own: mind reading, healing, seeing emotions, being able to cast a shield without wand, and he decided she would be useful. He told the other Death Eaters to take her with them to the Lestrange manor, when he went to destroy the Potters. He never returned and Arya/Jane stayed with the Death Eaters. They kept attacking villages and families in France, and brought Jane with them. They wanted to make her a spy, because no one would suspect a child. Arya/Jane escaped them, reported them and had them arrested. After that, she ended up in an orphanage, and her name was changed to Jane, for her safety. Mary/Lara had told Henry and Myriam about her sister, and they had informed the authorities. As a result, they got word that the 'missing sister' was found and adopted her, too. Jane is at this moment 7 years old, just like Harry; Lara is 9.  
In this story: Jane arrives in Britain, and is in the same class as Harry. They become friends; he helps her cope when her foster mother Myriam dies and it's Harry who finds out they are related. Jane takes the post of ambassador for France in Magical Britain (inheritable, in this story). She helps Harry from a distance when he goes to Hogwarts. Because she can feel and see emotions of others, big crowds like at Hogwarts are impossible to go near for her.  
Year 1 and 2 proceed like in canon (mostly), but in year three, Harry brings Sirius to the embassy with a Portkey, after Harry faced the Dementors at the Lake Shore. Sirius asks asylum. The English fail to deliver the paperwork about his trial (as it is non-existent), thus the French organize their own trial, were Sirius is found innocent. At this point, both Jane and Harry are fourteen, and both ready to start their fourth year at Hogwarts (because Jane has a better control of her abilities)._

* * *

**Henry's POV**

Henry drove his car home, early in the afternoon. He had gone to the local hospital where he worked, where he'd witnessed an expert demonstrating a new technique in surgery. It had been real art, he thought, how the surgeon had worked in less time, with less blood loss, better results and better healing afterwards. But it had also been exhausting, he thought, as he drove onto the driveway.

He frowned when he noticed the lights in the house were on. Sure, he knew that Jane had her fair bit of trouble sleeping – nearly insomnia – but that didn't mean he had to like it. Certainly, because he didn't know what was worrying her; she'd only said that there was a diplomatic incident. But Henry knew Jane for seven years now, and made himself no illusions: she wasn't telling the whole story. As annoying as it may be, he would wait until she came to him and explained what the problem was. He looked to the other side of the driveway, and was pleased to note that in that house, the lights were out. At least Harry had found a rare moment of rest – for he was just as bad as Jane, when it came to sleeping. Surprisingly, it was Sirius who slept the best of the lot of them, followed closely by Lara. With Henry's working schedule, sleeping soundly was a long-lost dream.

Sometime during his musings, he arrived at their house. Still lost in thought, he parked, killed the lights and shut down the engine. It was only when the noise of the latter died away, he blinked sluggishly. It had been a rather long day, and he was looking forward to relaxing for a bit in the sofa. Entering the building through the main hall of the embassy – who had built the thing like that, going through the entrance hall before you could reach the private part of it – he looked around surprised. There was an atmosphere of utter panic that reminded him forcefully of the day Sirius Black had escaped, with people running and yelling at each other, telephones ringing, owls flying everywhere. And it the middle of that, with a lost look on her face, stood Jane.

Walking up to her, with a sinking feeling that something must've gone terribly wrong, he asked: "Jane, what happened here?"

Until he stopped dead in his tracks.

Because on one side of the entrance hall, employees were cleaning what looked suspiciously much like blood.

Her eyes found his, and he saw a lingering sadness in them. "It's Harry," she replied.

The guy can't seem to catch a break, flashed through Henry's head.

* * *

**One day prior, Harry's point of view.**

Harry woke early in the morning and went to make breakfast. It had been a week since Sirius had been found innocent on the trial, and he'd enjoyed every single moment of that week. Since word about Sirius' innocence might not have spread abroad, they'd decided to come live in the guest building near the embassy. Remus had joined them, but he was still working from eight to five at the WCC.

But all in all, he finally got to know Sirius – who happened to have quite a lot of stories about his parents, too. That way, he learned that it had been his father's idea to become Animagi. That his father had fancied Lily for years, although she only had eye for him once he started to grow up. Sirius admitted – quite embarrassed – that they had been a bit of a joking lot, flirting with the border with bullies from time to time. Before they graduated, they'd made it a point to find all people they'd possibly offended and apologised. It was good Sirius amended that, because Harry had a strong dislike for bullies, after Dudley. There where fun stories, too – about the time his father and Sirius had enchanted all the suits of armour to start singing Christmas carols whenever someone passed.

"You shouldn't have made breakfast, you know," Sirius said, having entered while Harry was lost in thought, "I'm perfectly capable of doing it myself."

Harry just shrugged. It had been one of the few sore points between them. Sirius was worried Harry felt obligated to do so, because the Dursleys had always made him cook. But for Harry, it just gave him a sense of home and peace of mind.

"Have you thought about Jane's idea?", Sirius asked softly.

Harry pulled another face. This _idea_, as Sirius put it, was that Harry should see a mind healer. Harry had resisted vehemently, stubbornly claiming that he was perfectly fine. But even after such a short notice, Sirius had noticed how much trouble he had sleeping. It had been another sore point between them, especially after Remus had claimed that 'after what he'd heard about Harry's time at Hogwarts, it was probably for the best'. Harry had simply walked out on the lot of them. He couldn't bear the thought of just sprouting whatever he thought to a random person, and besides, he _was _fine. Even if his sleeping pattern could do with a little improvement, it would get better over time. It always did.

Thankfully, he didn't need to say anything, because Remus just walked into the room. Harry slit a plate over the table, with bacon and eggs, while taking a seat with his own plate. He saw Remus looking at Sirius questioningly from the corner of his eyes, to which Sirius simply shook his head. It only served to annoy him more. It was _his_ life. After so many years looking after himself, _he_ would decide _if _and _when_ he needed help, thank you very much. Perhaps some of his thoughts were showing on his face, because Remus changed subject hastily.

"So, what are you going to do today?"

Harry shrugged a bit moodily. As he was still recovering, there was honestly not much he could do. He'd hoped to do some flying, now he was in a magical environment, but unfortunately, the Healer had put his foot down. And equally unfortunately, Sirius followed through with that, even threatening to take away his broom if he went on it for a ride.

"Homework, I suppose," he replied, annoyed. He hadn't been able to do much when he was with the Dursleys, but he had made great progress with it ever since he woke after his fall. It had now mainly become an excuse; he only wanted to go somewhere with Sirius, but they hadn't received word of his innocence in the newspapers yet, making it dangerous to go out. He ignored Sirius' pointed look – Sirius had tried to get him to go visit friends or even write them, but then _he _had put his foot down. He didn't want to hear the pity in their voices when he told them what had happened. Not to mention what the masses would think… He could see the headlines already: 'Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived – until a Muggle came by'. He didn't want his name to be used by blood-bigots, to defend their actions against Muggles – it wasn't because his uncle did what he did, all Muggles were bad or something equally stupid.

"With such dedication, you must be top of your year! How where your school years so far, anyway?", Sirius asked.

Harry tensed. He hadn't thought about that – he'd thought Sirius knew what kind of troublemaker he was, what life-threatening situations came with knowing him. He swallowed. How would Sirius react?

Seeing that Sirius waited for an answer, he hastily sought something to divert attention from him. "Eh- I just remembered… I should go work on that Charms assignment, I'm no good at Charms – see you at lunch, Sirius. Have a good day working, Remus," he said, hastily retreating to his room.

Through the surprised silence, he almost made it.

Almost.

"Harry?", Sirius asked, "Don't you forget something?"

Harry eyed him quizzically.

Sirius pointed to Harry's plate, where he'd mostly pushed his food around.

"Oh – I'm not that hungry. A good cook has to taste what he prepares, after all," he replied evasively.

He sighed quietly when he managed to escape the room, walking upstairs to his as soon as he could, shutting himself in his room.

He couldn't bring himself to take out his books to pretend he was studying. How could Harry not have thought they didn't know about his previous years? It hadn't been in the newspapers. He groaned and let himself fall on the bed, covering his face with his hands. How could he let Sirius take him when he didn't know everything? What with Harry's tendency to be on Death's door, what with his recklessness… Would Sirius be so disappointed that he would kick Harry out? Would he decide that Harry was too dangerous to be around and just leave? What would Remus do?

Hands still covering his face, he sighed. He was so used to having Jane around to talk about this, but he hadn't seen her in a week. Maybe she was busy, maybe she wanted to give them time… _Or maybe she wants nothing to do with you after what you made her relive on Sirius trial_, his inner voice whispered mercilessly. He groaned.

Downstairs, the front door clicked as Remus left and Apparated. Harry decided to at least get his books out – that way, when Sirius came in, he could at least pretend to be doing something.

And indeed, Sirius peered around the corner about thirty minutes later.

"Everything okay here?", he asked concerned.

Harry looked back, and made his best attempt to smile. "I'll probably figure it out eventually," he replied, nodding to the book.

"I'm sure you will," Sirius replied reassuringly, "I'm going out to see my mind Healer – will you be okay on your own?"

Harry waved him off. "Of course I will! I'm just studying", he replied, forcing to keep his tone light.

Sirius seemed unconvinced. "I'll be gone for only an hour and a half," he said, frowning.

Harry decided another attempt at smiling. "Sure thing," he said.

Sirius left not much later, and Harry sight, pulling his eyes away from the book. He truly didn't feel like studying. He had – how much days did he have until the next school year, anyway? With being in a coma and those trials, he'd lost a bit track of time…

He stared a bit glassily at the calendar in his room, then sighed. He wouldn't get anything done today, anyway. Picking up a sweater and his wand, he left the house for a five-minute walk.

* * *

**An hour and a half later, Sirius POV.**

Mind healing, Sirius had decided, was a strange branch of Magic. It involved a lot of talking about his past and present, and he always had nightmares after it. Although he still couldn't decide whether it was worth it or not, he had noticed he coped a bit better than when he'd just escaped Azkaban. Remus continued presence and calm demeanour helped things.

As he entered through the back door, straight into the kitchen, he sighed. Then blinked.

The mess that came with breakfast still stood there, and he frowned. Usually, Harry would've asked an elf to clean them. But not today, apparently.

He sighed again when he thought back to this morning's discussion. Remus had told him Harry was good with Charms, and that made it safe to assume that Harry had tried to evade the topic. Remus had told him he'd heard Harry was often found neglecting school rules, and Sirius had just wanted to know what pranks his Godson had pulled. It appeared that Harry didn't want to talk about it, and he wondered why. He himself was not innocent; some of their pranks had been harmful and mean even. Surely, Harry knew he would not hold it against him.

He'd talked with the mind Healer about it, and he'd advised Sirius to sit down somewhere quiet and just ask the boy _why_ he didn't want to share, rather than _what_ he didn't want to share. He'd also warned Sirius that, after all the boy had been through, it was not impossible that he was getting depressed. _Loss of interest in things_, Sirius thought, check. _No appetite_, check. _Tiredness_, check. _Difficulties with concentrating_, maybe check. He sighed. Time to address the situation.

He went upstairs, to Harry's room – next to his – and knocked. "Harry? I'm back. Can I come in?"

No answer. For the first time, it struck him how absolutely silent it was. He couldn't hear any birds chirping like usual – Harry left the window open for Hedwig – he couldn't hear anything in there. The house seemed dark, gloomy and even … empty?

Swallowing, hoping he was wrong, he knocked again. "Harry? I'm worried. Say something, pal."

No reply.

He hurried to the bathroom, on the other end of the corridor. Hopefully, Harry was there, and he just hadn't heard Sirius knocking.

Hopefully, Sirius thought, only just reining in the panic.

"Harry, are you in there? I've got to pee!", he said. The latter was not true, but would explain why his voice sounded so frantic.

No reply.

He threw the door open and looked around, even behind the door and under the sink – as if Harry was just hiding there! He found nothing, and went to Remus' room. He couldn't imagine what Harry would've been doing there, but he had to check.

Nothing.

Turning, walking back to Harry's room, he knocked again. No answer.

Sirius had had enough.

He came in bursting through the door.

"Shit," he whispered.

The room was empty. The book his Godson had been pretending to read was still opened on his desk. He whirled around, trying to estimate if something was missing – Harry had confessed to buying some clothing for his own and hiding it from the Dursley's – but, in all honesty, he couldn't answer that question.

Sirius leaned against a wall, and sunk to his knees. There was only one question on his mind.

Where was his godson?

* * *

**Ten minutes later, Remus POV**

Thank Merlin for small favours, Remus thought. Today he was teaching an older group, ages fifteen to seventeen, meaning that he simply asked them to do independent work, while remaining available for question. The WWC was flourishing; more and more people came to them; more and more parents began to volunteer. They had roughly eighty children here, from ages five to seventeen. The WWC also offered assistance with finding a job, meaning that the children were more dedicated, now they knew their efforts wouldn't be wasted. And Remus took great pride in teaching them – although he wasn't the only one teaching them anymore, he only taught the eleven-year olds to the seventeen-year olds. They needed to do more independent work, because on top of the standard curriculum, they had classes about laws, Muggle studies, maths, science and English. On top of that, there were electives: COMC, Divination, Arithmancy, Ancient Runes and a foreign language (either French, German or Spanish). They'd found teachers for all the electives, but all the rest ended up on Remus' plate. School days were longer, too.

Unfortunately, the situation at home wasn't that good, Remus thought sadly. Sirius was doing better and better every day, both with dealing with his emotional luggage as with Harry. It was the latter that was the true problem, Remus thought, or rather: his behaviour was worrisome. He'd taught the boy for a year, and all those times, he seemed perfectly fine. Even after hearing his parent's voices, he seemed to be perfectly capable of taking care of himself and dealing with his emotions. Now, however, something was going on with him. And he wasn't talking to anyone of them. It had been the topic of more than one late night conversation between him and Sirius. Remus had been the first one to realise Harry evaded his friends, he rarely talked about himself or how he felt. He didn't want to go out, either. Each time they tried to talk with him, he all but ran from the room. They'd initially thought it would be a good idea to let Harry talk to a mind Healer, but his reaction had been worrisome – or rather, the lack of any reaction. They'd fully expected him to go shout he didn't need one; instead, he'd clenched his jaws and just said he was fine. There was something in his eyes right then and there that had Remus worried. Sirius, who hadn't been a fan of the idea for himself not so long ago, had less concern; but even he thought Harry's behaviour was out of the ordinary.

Remus was shaken from his worried thoughts when the secretary called him.

"Professor Lupin? There's someone on the line for you…", she said.

"Thank you, miss Jones," he replied smiling at her.

"Class, I want you to continue to study the Silencing charm. We'll be practicing it next lesson, which means I expect your scrolls in two days. That means you've got work to do, at least until I'm back, probably in five minutes. Okay?"

There was a chorusing of 'yes, professor Lupin' from all sides, which Remus took as his que to leave. The secretary had already left for her desk again, while Remus went to his office.

"Hello?", he asked. He had no idea who would be calling him. Sirius knew he was working and wouldn't call… unless something happened. Jane would come visit him. Apart from them, there were not many people who had this number – it was secret for a reason (namely, no unwanted pureblood visitors).

"Moony, he disappeared! He just disappeared! Oh Merlin, if something happened to him… I shouldn't have left…", shouted a familiar voice in his ear.

Sinking in his chair, Remus replied: "Sirius, calm down. Take a breath. Stop pacing. Then tell me what happened." He heard someone breathing in and out a few times.

"Harry disappeared," Sirius' miserable reply came.

Switching the horn to his left ear, Remus tried to think and reign in the panic that threatened to overtake him. "When?"

"I left him here before my session… Somewhere between one hour and forty minutes ago, and ten minutes ago – in my panic I forgot how phones worked…"

"Okay, okay. This is not your fault, Sirius. Did you notice something out of the ordinary – signs of a struggle or something?", Remus asked, hoping against hope.

"No… I think he left on his own devices; he would've put up a fight otherwise."

"Sirius, stay where you are, I'm Apparating home. We'll find him, okay?", Remus quickly tried to reassure his friend. But personally, he was worried out of his mind, too. Sirius hung up without giving an answer, and Remus hurriedly asked a colleague to take over the remainder of his class. He asked miss Jones to cancel all his other classes for today, and then Apparated home, where a worried Sirius awaited him.

"Did you ask any of his friends if he's with them?", Remus asked him. Although he doubted Harry would be with either Ron or Hermione, it would be wise to check.

Sirius shook his head. "Maybe he went to Jane's? After all, he's officially theirs…", Sirius said, trailing off. They both knew that if Harry wanted to visit, he would've told them he'd gone out.

Nonetheless, they walked the short walk to Henry's house, next to the embassy. They knocked on the kitchen door – the house here was like a copy of theirs – and waited, until Henry opened the door. Upon seeing them, he raised an eyebrow.

"Sirius, Remus… What happened?", he asked, gesturing for them to come in and sit at the kitchen table.

"It's Harry," Remus said, knowing his friend was too upset to talk, "he's gone."

Henry frowned worriedly. "I don't think I've seen him today," he said, although he thought it to be rather odd. Harry usually showed up when they held a moment of silence for his late wife, Myriam. It was five years ago she died, and he'd fully expected Harry to be there.

"But I do," a voice from behind said.

Whirling around, Remus saw Lara standing on the porch, smiling lightly.

"Lara! You're home!", Henry said excitedly, walking up to hug her.

She laughed softly. "Dad, you should now that helping after a hurricane in the States doesn't last forever!" *

He snorted.

Eyeing the two other men, she said: "There's a path, right there. It goes to the driveway. About halfway, there's a young three in a pasture and a picnic bench. Harry's sitting on it."

Remus felt relieved, and a glance to his right learned his friend felt the same way.

"I'm afraid it's a bit my fault," the girl smiled, "I hadn't seen Harry since a while, and I walked in on him when he was about to make a short walk. We talked a bit, and well… I guess we both forgot about the time, because suddenly, we had been speaking for an hour and a half." She shrugged a bit apologetically. "Oh, my I forgot about my manners… I apologise. I'm Lara, Jane's sister."

There was a chorus of nice-to-meet-you's.

Henry cleared his throat. "I've been meaning to talk to the both of you," he said, while he and Lara retook their seats, "how has Harry been?"

Remus and Sirius looked a bit at each other.

"Things haven't been that great," Sirius admitted, "I'm worried about him. He doesn't want to talk about the Dursleys, he doesn't want to talk about his previous years- "

Henry and Lara exchange a glance. "You know something," Remus said, trying to make his voice sound non-accusing.

Henry sighed. "Yeah, but I wonder why he doesn't want to speak with you- "

"Men," Lara sighed, "you do remember how Janes was when she came over, right Dad? It took us a whole year to pry the details out of her – well, not really _pry_, because that's not a good idea, but you know." She made helpless gesture, unable to express what she meant.

Henry nods thoughtfully. "The question is, how do we convince Harry of that?"

Lara shrugged half-heartedly. "I can't. Neither can you. But Jane can."

Henry grimaces. "I don't know what the hell is going on, but she's working harder than ever – she leaves for the office at four in the morning and only returns around midnight."

"Then we'll have to talk to her," Lara replied evenly.

"But what do we do in the mean time? Harry is not eating well – and after all the malnourishment, he needs it. He looks tired, is easily distracted, loses interest in things – this can't go on!", Sirius said, a little desperately.

"Play a Quidditch match?", Lara suggested. "Although, mind you, I can't fly to safe my life."

Henry shook his head. "I can't clear him yet."

Lara frowned, then smiled: "And what about riding Nyx?" Nyx was a foal Harry had cared for when she was ill. They all expected her to die anyway, but she made it, and Harry was the only one who could ride her.

Henry smiled. "Sure thing – I trust you have a plan?"

Lara smiled. "Sure do."

* * *

**Meanwhile, Harry's POV**

Harry sat on the picknick table, eyeing Myriam's memorial tree – the tree they had planted to remember her – while placing a rose near the tree. The five-minute walk had taken him to a nearby florist, where he'd ordered a mixture of lilies and rosemary. He'd only just waved Lara off when she went to let Henry know she was back, and he was missing her already. It was hard to talk to Remus and Sirius, who didn't know what had happened to him before and at Hogwarts; at the same time, he didn't want them to know, afraid for their reactions. In fact, he didn't want to do anything – except flying, the one thing he wasn't allowed to do. Flying always cleared his head.

At first, when he heard footsteps approaching, he didn't look up. He wasn't ready to face the world again – it had been so peaceful and quite hear.

"Harry?", he heard Remus' hoarse voice saying.

His head jerked up, and he saw Henry, Sirius and Remus standing there, while Lara joined him on the picknick table.

"Did something happen?", he asked worriedly.

Remus and Sirius exchanged a surprised glance. "You weren't there when I came back," Sirius replies carefully.

Harry frowns. "No, I wasn't," he said absently.

Lara sighed – she wasn't really patient. "It's strange to do, but what they're trying to say is if you say you'll be at a place at a certain time, and you aren't there, they are going to worry about you."

Harry blinked. "Oh."

Sirius frowned. "We care about you, Harry. Therefore, we want to know where you are."

Harry looked at the tree. "The Dursley's never asked," he said silently.

"It's not your fault," Lara says forcefully.

Remus looked at them strangely. "No, of course not, it's just a misunderstanding. We understand, Harry."

Harry nods once, still not looking them in the eye.

"And, what are your plans this summer?", she asked him cheerfully, clapping her hands.

Harry raised an eyebrow and finally turned to them. "What are your plans for me, you mean?", he asked, with a ghost of a smile.

"Ah, I'm so glad you ask!", she replied cheerfully. "You remember our neighbours? They have a charity competition. It'll contain show jumping and cross-country. And the profit will go to the people surviving the hurricane in the USA."

"Sounds good, but why exactly is that relevant?", Harry asked suspiciously.

"Because you're going to participate!", Lara replied cheerfully.

"Funny thing, I wasn't aware of that," Harry replied dryly, "Am I cleared yet, doc?"

"How could I say no?", Henry replied laughingly.

Harry nodded, for the first time smiling. "How 'bout a nice ride now?", he asked Lara.

"On one condition, mate," she replied, still laughing, "you never told me how you met my sister! I wanna know!"

Harry sighed. "Questions, questions. Always questions."

But, inwardly, it warms his heart that Lara subtly reminded him how good a friend he has.

* * *

**That night, Harry POV**

Lara, Sirius and he had gone on a nice ride after the story, which had Remus and Sirius smiling. Remus needed to get back to work, but Sirius accompanied them as a dog, as they rode to a river after the story. They'd had the most fun splashing each other in the water, as it was a warm day. They'd jumped some minor obstacles even, and for the first time in days, weeks even, Harry had felt free of any concern.

That night, they'd had dinner at Henry's. Unfortunately, as it was Remus turn to stay at the WWC at night (teachers took turns in that), he hadn't been able to join them. They'd then spent their time with a game 'don't lose your head' – Sirius had been anxiously waiting until something exploded or something, not being able to believe Muggle board games didn't work that way. All in all, it had been a good night, even though Jane still didn't show up when they'd left at ten P.M.

Unfortunately, even when he'd been more active than usual, Harry still couldn't sleep. He sighed, and kicked the blankets away. He decided on a cup of the caffeine-free tea Jane had gifted him for his birthday – tea was one of the few English things she'd quickly gotten used to. Walking silently past Sirius room, he went to put the kettle on the fire. He could, of course, wake Sirius to do this in an instant, but there was something soothing about doing it himself. While he waited for the kettle to start whistling, he looked outside the window. It was probably close to three A.M., he thought. Way to early – or late, when you considered he hadn't been able to sleep yet.

* * *

**Same time, Sirius POV**

After Azkaban, he'd never slept well. His mind healer had suggested some sleeping draughts to begin with, together with some exercises to 'calm his mind', and then to try and replace the former with the latter. Sirius had thought of it as rubbish – but today's events had alerted him to the fact that it was no longer only about _him_. Harry needed him – look at how he flourished when someone _did_ pay attention to him – and he'd seen the concern on Remus' carefully neutral face, as plain as if it had been his own.

So, he'd caved, that night for the first time. And for the first time, he'd slept well.

"Sirius! Wake up, now!", a voice shouted.

Sirius blinked sluggishly.

Harry was looking at him from the door frame. Distantly, he heard an odd whistling.

"Whazist?", he asked vaguely, still under the influence of the potion.

"Get up!", Harry whispered, looking back to the corridor.

Cursing, Harry went in the room, and grabbed his arm. "Emergency," he whispered, while Sirius eyed him uncomprehendingly.

Then, he saw to curses speeding their way.

The next moment, they whirled away, in the haze that followed Portkeys.

Hitting the ground of their destination hard - he hadn't expected to be Portkeyed away, after all – he looked around. The hall they were standing in looked ancient, with marble and desks. He frowned. "Where are we?", he asked. And, more importantly, who were those people, he wondered.

He got no reply.

He whirled around, and saw Harry laying there, completely still, with a meaningful red spot, blossoming on his shirt.

* * *

*** I've got no idea if there were any (big) hurricanes that year, but hey, it's fiction after all **

**Also, I'm a mean person with the cliff hangers.**

**The reason for this attack will be revealed next chapter! I hope to upload next week, but as I need to prepare some exams – again, I know… - I can't guarantee. I try.**

**Thank you all for your continued support!**


	24. Chapter 24

**Author's note: I'm sorry I'm late! Life caught up with me, and there were some things that I needed to do before uploading, they took more time than I'd thought.**

**There we go, another chapter down! I estimate we're roughly halfway the story – as I only have an outline in my head, it's a bit hard to tell. Unfortunately, I'll have less time the upcoming weeks to write. I'll still try to upload in two weeks, but it's going to be hard. Even worse, if I don't make that update, I won't be able to upload until October (gah, such a long time!). I'm taking some time off, to come up with new ideas for this story. It has been a bit difficult, as of lately. There are more reasons why I have to take a break, but I'd rather not discuss them. Let me just tell you I'm having a hard time, mentally. But I will continue this, rest assured.**

**For authenticity, there's going to be some French in here. Then English translation will follow, between bracelets. Comme ça [like this].**

**Special thanks to mwinter1 – you always remind me I have an audience. Seriously, without you, this story would've died out.**

* * *

"_Sirius! Wake up, now!", a voice shouted._

_Sirius blinked sluggishly._

_Harry was looking at him from the door frame. Distantly, he heard an odd whistling._

"_Whazist?", he asked vaguely, still under the influence of the potion._

"_Get up!", Harry whispered, looking back to the corridor._

_Cursing, Harry went in the room, and grabbed his arm. "Emergency," he whispered, while Sirius eyed him uncomprehendingly._

_Then, he saw two curses speeding their way._

_The next moment, they whirled away, in the haze that followed Portkeys._

_Hitting the ground of their destination hard - he hadn't expected to be Portkeyed away, after all – he looked around. The hall they were standing in looked ancient, with marble and desks. He frowned. "Where are we?", he asked. And, more importantly, who were those people, he wondered._

_He got no reply._

_He whirled around, and saw Harry laying there, completely still, with a meaningful red spot, blossoming on his shirt._

* * *

**Harry's POV, moments after arrival**

Whatever curse hit him, it hurt like hell. But, while feeling the cool marble, he realised he'd done it. They had escaped.

"Embassy," he ground out in reply to Sirius. He fought to open his eyes, and won. He looked straight into Sirius' worried eyes.

"Err- shit, what do I do now? Err- "

Harry smiled weakly. "Sirius, breath. There, under that desk, break the glass and bring the coffer," he said, pointing to a desk – and wincing because of the pain.

Sirius blinked and did as told.

"Push the towel on the wound. Push hard," Harry says, grinding his teeth. This is going to hurt.

"Okay, drape the blanket around me," Harry ordered, after he took some deep breaths for the pain.

"Shouldn't I call for help?", Sirius asked dubiously.

"When the glass is broken, an emergency signal goes out."

Harry closes his eyes. Tired, so tired… Should sleep… Dimly, he heard shouting, but it was too late, he slid away in darkness.

* * *

**Jane POV, a few minutes earlier.**

It's late at night, when Jane returns to her house. Things weren't really working out like she'd hoped they would…

Then, an alarm blared. She cursed under her breath, because only limited people would Portkey into the atrium of the embassy. She broke off in a run, hoping she was wrong about her deductions.

She wasn't.

There laid Harry, pale and unconscious, bleeding. There was Sirius, who desperately tried to stop the bleeding. Remus, she knew, was at the WWC – luckily. She noticed from the corner of her eyes that the Aurors who had responded to the alarm, too, pointed their wants at Sirius.

"Laissez-le. Segmentez la zone et prospecte", she orders them. [Leave him. Search the area.]

They hurried off, and she sank to her knees next to Harry. "Keep putting pressure on that wound," she warned Sirius, examining the area of the wound. She cursed under her breath. The injury was on the right side of his body, just below the ribs – excellent to hit the liver, which would explain the extensive blood loss. She turned to the nurse who came running behind the Aurors. "Where's Henry? And his colleague?"

"There's been a major train accident, madam. They were on call," she replies.

Jane closed her eyes. She can't treat Harry here – he needs surgery, and all surgeons are gone from the premises. She can't do it herself. On the same time, she can't transport him – whatever curse it was, hit him hard. "And the medi-witch?", she asks, getting hope.

"Went to St. Mungo's – apparently, some witches were on the same train. They needed her."

Jane cursed. They really needed someone to stay here, in such cases…

That left one option, no matter how unhappy Harry would be with her.

"Get the blankets, get an IV drip going, gather some blood. Get the Dreamless Sleep and Strengthening Potion," she ordered quickly.

"I have to object – ", the nurse began.

"Noted," Jane replied evenly. "Do you have other options?"

The nurse remained silent.

"Sirius, I'm going to take over you position, but we need to time it. On the count of three, you remove your hands," Jane ordered.

"One, two, three!"

Jane took a few calming breaths and closed her eyes, trying to feel Harry with her magic. There it was! Like she'd feared, the liver had been hit. Because of the spiralling during Portkeying, the wound had torn. She concentrated deeply, trying to gather all her energy to fix it.

She couldn't see it, but the other two saw how the blood flow gradually lessened, and flesh seemingly began to grow in the wound. They saw how the wound closed, how scarring began. Finally, Jane leaned back and opened her eyes.

"Report," she ordered, sounding deadly tired. Sirius stared at her in awe, but she didn't even steal a glace his way.

"Hypovolemic shock was setting in," the nurse replied, "but blood pressure is coming up, hart rate down. Sats are back to normal. He's stabilizing."

"Get him to room one, and arrange supervision," she said.

Just at that moment, the stretcher arrived, and they heaved Harry on it. Jane leaned against the wall, eyes closed again, feeling extremely drained. She dimly heard Sirius and the nurse exchange some words, then the stretcher left. She sighed.

"Drink up," Sirius told her seriously, handing her the Strengthening Potion.

She groaned and complied. Leaning back against the wall, she asked: "what happened?"

"I don't really know. One moment, Harry woke me. The next, we're here and he is bleeding. I just saw the curse – "

"Witch one?", she asked.

"_Diffindo."_

Jane frowned, and got to her feet again. She blinked sluggishly. As on que, the Aurors returned.

"Il n'ya personne, madame," the eldest said. [There is no one, Mrs.]

She nodded and thanked them.

"Did you expect them to be?"

"Yes and no, Sirius. They can't Apparate, they can't Portkey. Two options left: they go back through the woods, or they come past this building. They didn't do the latter, so they did the former. And I'm going to search them with a team."

"Assemblez une équipe," she ordered the head Auror [Gather a team.]

Sirius stared at the corridor Harry disappeared in. "When do you think he'll wake?"

"At least ten hours. If we're not back by then, we're dead."

"All right, I'm coming with you."

* * *

**Sirius POV, five minutes later, their house**

It suddenly feels strange, being here. People attacked us in our own house, and he didn't notice. He can't help feeling guilty about it. Jane gestured to the Aurors, and they burst through the door, checking rooms, yelling clear with their French accents from time to time.

"All clear," the head of their team says.

They step inside together, and Sirius looks around for a bit. The door was clearly unlocked with a rather complex unlocking charm – the lock was protected against the simpler ones – as there were no obvious signs of forced entry. A mug was splattered on the floor of the kitchen, the kettle still on the fire, no longer whistling. The dead silence had something obnoxious about it.

They walked together to Sirius' room. Jane looked around, examined some blood on the ceiling.

"What so interesting there?"

She smiled grimly. "Muggles have a science called forensics. It's about finding the perpetrators of violence. In this case, it can tell me where the attacker stood in relation to the victim."

"I don't understand why they didn't just kill us," Sirius said, "would've been far easier."

Jane shrugs; clearly, she can't provide an answer. Then she frowns, and kneeled on the floor. She looked in the direction of the corridor, then back to the bed.

"They wanted to kill you," she says, pointing to the blood, "the curse would've slashed your throat, had Harry not stood in the way. Although they tried to scrape it to make things look different."

"But why me? I'm innocent- "

Jane looks suddenly guilty. "Jane – what's going on?!"

"Fudge is being pig-headed. He says that you've mislead everyone or something, god only knows. He claims that, should the trial be held here, you would've been found guilty. In normal English, he denies the trial in France. He claims he's investigating some leads, and will make his decision later. It would be awfully convenient, if the problem solved itself with your death, don't you think?"

"Great – just great. Now they've finished locking me up, they want me death. Awesome," the man mumbled.

"But there are other options. Maybe they were after Harry; maybe they wanted to send a message to me. We all have powerful enemies, don't we?"

"So… Maybe they used the cutting charm to frame someone?"

Jane looked thoughtful. "Yes exactly…" she said absentmindedly.

Sirius nodded. "So, what did you want to find in here?"

"What happened. Harry was up, made tea, was alarmed and came to you. Doesn't rule out any of the theories: if they were after you, they still tried to kill you; if they were sending a message to me, it didn't matter who they hit; if they were after Harry, killing you would've shocked him and given them an opportunity," Jane said pensively. "Now we also know how they left; the same way they entered. That means we can follow them into the woods; maybe even catch them."

Moments later, they had assembled at a path into the wood, which the attackers had presumably taken. Except Sirius, everyone was on horseback, spreading in various directions, as they had masked their trails. Sirius and Jane ended up taken the one path Lara and the group had taken the day before. It wasn't long before Sirius was in dog form and caught their scent. They proceeded in an easy trot, Sirius snuffling as much as he could. At one point, they came near a stream, and Sirius morphed back into his human form.

"They probably went into the water. Can't scent them anymore."

Jane harrumphed thoughtfully, and began looking around. Sirius kicked some stones, mumbling about 'escaping terrorists' and 'wasting time'.

It was maybe ten minutes before Jane looked up from where she was studying the ground.

"Tell me, Sirius, what do you see?", she asked.

The tone in her voice made him bite back a sarcastic response. "The stream, there are stones upstream, there are rocks further up there, too. A forest, with no one in the neighbourhood. Us wasting time!"

She smiled. "Ah, no. You can't smell them anymore, but see there, downstream in the stream, there's mud, yes? There are no foot prints in it, and not a mark yet on the paw prints you've left over here. Thus, they went upstream, over the rocks. Because they finally found their brain back."

Sirius blinked.

"Are you coming, sweetie?", she asked teasingly.

He muttered a few choice words under his breath, and they followed the path the attackers had taken.

* * *

**Jane POV, forest, thirty minutes later**

It was not hard, to find out where they went – or at least not in the beginning. Then, they began to mark their trails again. It wasn't difficult for her, but Sirius was lost before they even started. Finally, they stopped, in the middle of the trail.

"Would you look at that," Jane said softly, pulling a piece of cloth out of the thorny bushes.

"No, I don't want to, thank you," Sirius replied dryly.

"I think you do. Because these is a sort of fabric only used for the robes of hitwizards. It's made of acromantula silk and is easier to embroider protective enchantments in." *

Sirius swallowed, and for the first time this night, Jane thought that the government trying to kill him was a serious possibility.

"I'll scout a bit, because I've lost track again," she stated softly. Walking continuously bigger circles around the place where she'd found the cloth. She looked around as much as she could, until she heard something she did not expect to hear in the forest.

Voices.

* * *

**Sirius POV, forest, same time**

Not long after Jane left, his wand was suddenly flying. To his left, two people stood in the shadow of an older oak.

"Would you look at that, colleague," one of them said.

"Wandering straight in our hands, why thank you," the other said.

Sirius eyed them both uneasily. "What do you want?"

"Ah, wouldn't we like to know?", one of them spoke softly.

"Yes, I do, actually."

"Your death," the second one replied easily, raising his wand.

Robes erupted from the tip of his wand, and bound Sirius.

"_Diffindo_," the first one said.

Only the charm never hit its target. An arrow came flying, straight into the path of the curse, and shattered.

The two people stood there, unmoving. "What the- "

"Drop your wands," a soft, young, female voice said, full of authority.

They started to turn.

"Don't. Drop them. Last warning."

Suddenly, one of them threw the other forward, towards Sirius, and stepped to his right, while raising his wand – only it was thrown out of his hand, pierced by another arrow. His colleague, recovered from his unexpected dive, took his foot and they Disapparated.

Jane cursed, running towards Sirius, sending red sparks flying to alarm the others – she hadn't dared before, when she thought Sirius was under attack – and helped him out of the ropes.

"You okay?", she asked.

"Yeah, yeah. So that solves it, then. They want me," he replied.

Jane shook her head. "Maybe only because you're the only one who has clearly seen them – Harry might not make it, in their opinion. They don't know what we do. But you're probably right. Let's get back."

* * *

**Jane POV, her house**

Walking up to her, with a sinking feeling that something must've gone terribly wrong, he asked: "Jane, what happened here?"

Until he stopped dead in his tracks.

Because on one side of the entrance hall, employees were cleaning what looked suspiciously much like blood.

Her eyes found his, and he saw a lingering sadness in them. "It's Harry," she replied.

The guy can't seem to catch a break, flashed through Henry's head.

* * *

**Jane POV, Ministry of Magic**

After she'd dropped off Sirius, she'd tried to catch some sleep. At exactly six in the morning, she'd send word to Fudge – her PM had already been informed – that she wanted to see him. And there she was, waiting outside his office, until the big-headed fool would finally deem the time right to receive her. Finally, after over half an hour of waiting, his secretary gestured for her to come in.

"Madame ambassador, so nice to see you, even this early in the morning. What can we do for you?"

She raised an eyebrow at the royal plural. "Explain me why two hitwizards where on _my _propriety, attacking people. On _French_ soil."

Fudge blinked. "I'm sorry, dear, you must have misunderstood- "

"Oh? Are you saying then, that despite your claims from last week, you _can_ buy acromantula silk illegally?"

"Off course not- "

"Then why was it found on the scene of the crime?!"

"There must be an explanation for this, and I'll personally look into it, my dear. This is horrible, and certainly not because of my orders. Accept my sincerest apologies. I hope no one is hurt?"

"A fourteen-year-old has been fighting for his life tonight, Fudge. Save your apologies for someone who actually believes them. Make work of your investigation, and we'll talk again."

She rose and left the room. The 'fighting for his life thing' was an exaggeration, but it would spur him into action, out of fear for the public's reaction. As annoying as she thought him to be, as stupid as he was on a regular basis, this attack seemed out of character for him. If she wanted it to, it could blow up hugely and backfire. Then again, if everything had gone according to plan, there would've been no witnesses. Perhaps Sirius had been right…

But there were other possibilities, and she had to react accordingly. She went back to the atrium and asked for the register of wizards working there. Luckily, the name she'd been looking for was there. She looked up and asked the clerk: "When will Amelia Bones return?"

"In an hour," the clerk responded.

Jane nodded, and left. A young woman stepped out of the shadows, stumbling slightly, and followed her onto the streets.

* * *

**Unknown individual, outside the Ministry of Magic**

The young girl, about fourteen years old, was difficult to follow. Frequently, I thought I was seen, but given that she didn't spook or screamed for help, nor did she turn around for a good look, maybe I was overreacting. She seems to do some window-shopping, probably waiting until the person she inquired about returned. I wonder where she lives – which is the reason I'm following her. On paper she is a ghost, nearly no paperwork about her. She hasn't done anything wrong, and before her time as ambassador, there's very little known about her. Even after becoming ambassador, there's much shadows around her. There are people whispering in the corridors that she's assembling an army of werewolves, but I don't believe it. Only last week, they were whispering about an affair between the Brazilian president and our ambassador there – no truth to it.

As we round yet another corner – jeez, this girl doesn't know what she wants – I stumble over a public trashcan. After a bit of apologies to the shop owner whose shop is now a mess, I look around.

And my heart sinks.

My target has disappeared.

Suddenly, I feel something poking between my shoulder blades.

"Move," a voice whispers in my ear. "Straight on."

I obey. I have no choice. Am I not the only one stalking this girl?

"Next one on the left," the voice orders.

The person is good. I have yet to see an opportunity to safely turn around and seize the wand, or something. It doesn't really reassure me. _This is why we work in teams_, I can practically hear my partner, Kingsley Shacklebolt, saying that. I hope I can still tell him I realised he was right.

We reach an abandoned building. "Enter it."

And I obey. When I'm used to the darkness inside, I see the girl I've been following watching me emotionlessly.

"Désarmez-la," is the only thing she says [disarm her.]

The person behind me takes my wand, and hands it over to the girl, who studies it.

"Thank you, Jean," she says, nodding to the front door.

He walks out, while she twirls my wand.

"So, you've been following me…" she starts.

I say nothing.

She stares at me for a bit. "Who are you?"

"Novella Light," I reply.

She stares at me. "It's much easier if you don't lie," she replies, still no emotion in her voice.

I swallow.

"Amelia Shacklebolt," I try again.

She snorts. "At least the last one was inventive. Combining the surname of your partner and the first name of your boss is not. Try again, sweetie."

"Nymphadora Tonks," I sigh.

She eyes me for a moment. "Nice to meet you, Nymphadora Tonks. I'm Jane Davidson. Why are you following me?"

I decide to try again. "Fudge ordered me."

"That's a lie. Nice word play, by the way. Light, as opposite to Black, your mother's maiden name. Novella, as in novelty – the first one to do something, in this case, being in the Light and a Black."

I swallow. This girl is good.

"Last chance, or I'll just take my leave and report you. Why?"

"I hoped you are in touch with Sirius Black."

Her face remains impassive, but something flashes through her eyes. Is it… understanding?

"And, if so, what would that mean to you?"

"I would like to send him a message."

"Being?"

I hesitate, and the girl becomes impatient again. "I wanted to meet him, to get to know him. I know he's innocent – my mother never doubted it, but she feared for my future… She was an outcast, and she didn't want me to become one, too."

The girl eyes me for a while. "I'll see what I can do for you… Can you answer a question for me?"

I don't like open questions. "I'll try," I reply.

"If you wanted an investigation against people in the close environment of the PM, with loads of money, and you wanted it done fairly, who would you ask?"

I ponder the question. "Amelia Bones."

The girl nods, and smiles while she throws my wand back to me. "I'll set up an appointment for tomorrow. I'll try to reply to your request by then, but it's going to be hard."

She leaves, and I let out a sigh of relief.

* * *

**Jane POV, Ministry of Magic**

Still pondering her conversation with the strange girl that had followed her, she entered the atrium again. When she had noticed someone was following her, she'd discreetly alarmed her personal guard and asked for a random person in the Atrium. She had, of course, not known for sure that the Shacklebolt on the list was her partner, but it was a solid guess. And it had had its desired effect.

While she was thinking, she saw the wizard she'd actually wanted to speak.

"Mr Arthur Weasley?", she called out. In fact, it was not a question – the red hair was unmistakeable.

"Yes?", a tired looking man answered – not surprising, given that he'd had a busy night shift.

"Hello, I'm Jane Davidson, a friend of your son Ron. I have an… urgent message about a mutual friend of us."

He frowns at her.

"It's about Harry Potter," she said softly, making sure only he can hear her.

He narrows his eyes as he studies her face. "Come with me, then."

And they side-along Apparate her to the Burrow. Harry had talked about it, and he'd not exaggerated. It was a rather charming, warm home. The chickens scurried away, as Mr. Weasley brought her with him to the kitchen.

"Arthur, you're late- "

Mrs. Weasley stops dead.

Mr. Weasley scrapes his throat. "This is Jane Davidson, ambassador for Magical France. She says she's a friend of Ron's."

Before either one of them can say anything else, Ron enters the kitchen, where the rest of the Weasley children are already eating breakfast.

"Jane!", he says, blinking fast. Turning around, he yells: "Hermione! Come down, now!"

Jane represses a smile; Hermione won't like it.

"Madame ambassador, nice to meet you," one of the other children says.

"Oh – I've met you before… Percy Weasley, aren't you?"

"Yes, that's me," he replies seriously.

"How is work at the ministry? Do you like working there?", Jane asks. Last time, she'd met him when he'd came along with Crouch for a statement in the case Black.

"It's daunting, challenging. But I wouldn't want it any other way," he replies.

Jane smiles at him. "Daunting, I still think that about my job every day!"

Now the other Weasleys start introducing themselves, too.

As Hermione enters the kitchen, she says: "Honestly, Ronald, why are you screaming like that? What is so – "her eyes land on Jane.

"Oh, no," she says sadly.

"Perhaps we can sit down?", Jane suggests feebly.

As they do so, Mrs. Weasley asks: "are you here for a special reason, madame Ambassador?"

"You can drop the title, Mrs. Weasley. And yes, I am. Last night, Harry Potter was with me and there was an attack on the estate."

"Where you all right?", the oldest Weasley child inquires.

"I am. But Harry got injured."

"Will he be alright?", Hermione asked anxiously.

She smiles at her. "It was touch and go for a while, but he's out of the woods now."

"Can we visit him?", Ron asks her.

"Indeed, that's why I came. He's been a bit… lonely, and this… Well, I just think he'd needs his friends. I'd be happy to have you over – you can just floo."

"All of us?", Mrs. Weasley asks her now.

"Sure thing, should you want to."

"Who was behind the attack?", Ron asks her suddenly.

She remains silent. Should she tell them about her suspicions, because they could be a target too; or shouldn't she, because she had no proof?

Ron watched her face for a moment. "You took the UK government is involved?"

She sighed. "I've found clothes belonging to hitwizards. I've seen them in person. They are British. Whether they were acting on their own accord, or on the PM's command, I cannot tell you. I've asked an inquiry."

"You think it has to do with what happened in France a few weeks ago," Ron states.

"D'you mean it didn't make the papers here?"

They both shake their heads. "Sirius Black has been declared innocent of all charges," Jane says evenly. "It's proven that Peter Pettigrew betrayed the Potters instead, and staged his own death after Voldemort's demise. However, the PM doesn't want the story to out, as he played a significant role in getting an innocent man in Azkaban, without trial. Neither does Barthy Crouch Sr., who gave the order for shipping to Azkaban."

Percy blinks. "Mister Crouch? My employer?"

Jane eyes him for a bit. "It's entirely possible he did it as a precaution; after all, the Wizarding World was in uproar, after Voldemort's demise. They wanted blood for the murder on the Potters. In Azkaban, no one would come to kill him in his holding cell. Why he did not stand trial after that, is unclear. Perhaps, in the mayhem that was the end of the war, he was simply forgotten. Perhaps it was on purpose, because he would have a large impact on Harry's life, and on politics. I don't assume it was intentional – but it still is possible. You would do wise, Percy, to consider all options at all times."

"Black is innocent?", Charlie asked her "How did that come out?"

Jane blinks, and eyes Ron. He shakes his head; no, he hadn't told anyone about it.

His mother, however, caught the glance. "Ron?!", she asked, half-screaming.

Jane scraped her throat. "I'll see you when you're ready."

She left.

* * *

**Ron POV, Jane's house**

When all of us – except dad – arrive, it has been a while, since Jane's visit. It takes a while to get us all ready. We are shown through the rather large entrance hall, downstairs to the basement, where we meet a man in white coat.

"Ah, you must be the Weasleys. Hello, Hermione. I'm Henry Davidson. Nice to meet you."

There's a chorus of nice-to-meet-you's.

"Come on along! Harry's just awake after his latest nap, albeit a bit groggy from the medications."

They pause before a door with number one on it, and Henry nocks.

The door buzzes open, and there lies our best friend. He's looking rather pale, there's something in his arms and tubes under his nose, but he looks alert enough; that's a good sign.

When he recognises us, his face breaks into a huge grin. "Hello there!"

Hermione dashes past me and gives him a hug, but Ron is too impressed by all the fancy machines bleeping around him. Henry is examining them, and takes some equipment of.

"I'll leave you to it."

"Oh, Henry, where's Jane hiding out?"

Henry frowned. "There was a message for her, and she left immediately after she received it. If you see her, tell her that she should get some sleep, or I'll drug her."

Harry snickered. "I'll try."

Henry walked off, muttering about 'insolent children who don't know their limits'. But he was sure, before Henry rounded the corner, there was a little smile tugging on his lips.

"Hey mate!", Ron says, giving him a manly hug myself.

What follows is an introduction of all the Weasleys.

"Hey Harry mate!", Ron says, after he remembers why he would've written him anyway. "You need to come with us for the WC Quidditch! It's held in England – D'you reckon the Muggles let you go?"

"Oh, I'm sure my guardians will let me come – but you really shouldn't have done that - "

"Nonsense," his mother says, "we're very glad to do so."

"Oh, but I've got an invitation, too! There's a horse-riding benefit game, next week, right next doors. I'm participating," Harry says, pulling a funny face.

"With a little of encouragement," a voice near the door says amusedly. "Knock knock," she continues, mimicking someone knocking.

"Lara, don't scare the lot of us, haven't you heard I'm recovering?", Harry asks teasingly.

"Nah, and all this equipment and you being here went completely over my head," she jokes freely. Then she turns more sober. "My sister is on the way – and she hasn't got good news."

"Does she ever?"

"Thank you," Jane's voice replies dryly from the door her sister just vacated. "Delightful to hear."

"What news do you have, then?", Ron asks.

"I've got to offer: bad news, worse news and… That's it, I believe. Which do you want to hear first?"

"Fire away," Harry replies dryly.

"Your attackers have been found dead."

Harry blinks. "Killing Curse?"

Jane nods. "Authorities have been knocking on the WWC's door in the middle of the night, too."

At the confused looks of the Weasley's, she explains: "the WWC or WereWolf Centre, is a place that Harry and I run. It's a safe harbour for Werewolves, who can change and are being taken care of. The Ministry thinks we're creating an army, but technically, we're hoping if we include werewolves more in society, they won't join Voldemort."

"That's a good plan!", Charlie says enthusiastically. "You'd have to focus on education, and orphaned or abandoned young werewolves…"

Harry and Jane exchange a glance. "We've thought of the first, but not of the latter… Of course, then we'd need some kind of maternal figure…", Jane says trailing off.

Harry scrapes his throat, while arching an eyebrow to Jane. "Oh, yes, that could work, of course," she replies.

"What?", my mother asks confusedly.

"Mrs. Weasley," Harry begins kindly, "how would you feel about doing that? We can set up a contract for you." Jane nods vigorously in the background.

"Oh, but I don't have qualifications."

Jane shrugs. "And? Is there some course one needs to take to be a mother? I think not. But Harry has seen you working with your children, and he recommends you. I don't take that lightly."

Ron privately thinks that mom can make some money, too; something they're always in need off. He has got the feeling Jane and Harry both know the same thing, and it touches him that they've thought about us.

"I'll have the paperwork ready for you in half an hour, and then you can decide what to do, how does that sound?", Jane proposes.  
My mother nods, but he can already see she's seriously considering. Ron is glad for her; when we are gone, of towards Hogwarts, the house must be incredibly empty. For someone who likes to be around people like mom, it must be dreadful.

"How did you two meet, actually?", Ron asks curiously. "I know Jane taught Hermione how to ride, but what about you two?"

Harry starts sniggering, while Jane blushes a bright red.

"Oh, would you knock it off! It's not that funny," she groans.

Harry's laughing all out now.

"What's so funny?", a hoarse voice near the door asks.

It's professor Lupin, standing in the doorway. The latter seems to be quite busy, today. With him is a familiar black dog, who enters the room barking and jumps on the bed, licking Harry.

"Ew, Sirius! Gross! Drool over someone else, would you?", he asks laughingly.

The dog barks, jumps down and starts chasing its own tail. Harry smiles, and bursts out laughing when Jane scolds Sirius as he knocks over a standard.

"What's that for, anyway?", Hermione asks curiously. I'm surprised – who would have thought there was something 'Mione didn't know?

"Fluids," Harry replies, smiling reassuringly. "I've lost a bit of blood, need to make up for it. That's why I have the oxygenation- "he gestures to a tube under his nose – "too. Can't that thing get lost?"

Jane sighs. "No, Harry," she replies in a tone like he'd asked that a hundred times already.

Harry frowns. "Jane was just going to tell Ron how we'd become friends," he says.

"Oh, that sounds like a story," Sirius laughs.

"I'm sure Harry can tell it so much better," Jane shoots right back.

"Well… There was a bully on my school who was always bullying me. So, one day, Jane punched him on the nose."

"Jane!", my mother admonishes. Then she reddens, realizing who she is speaking to.

"I know, I know, violence is no solution – although, he did stay away from me afterwards… Besides, I didn't punch him on the nose!"

"Oh, no? Then what would you call it?", Harry asks laughingly.

"His nose and my fist where on the same place and on the same time, because he was too busy insulting you to even notice me," she says, an indignant tone in her voice.

"Isn't that the same thing?", Ron teases her, barely keeping a straight face.

"Oh, shut it!", she crosses her arms stubbornly. "You wanted me to go to the teachers? They never believed Harry anyways."

"That's true," Harry replies sadly. He yawns, and tries to hide it unsuccessfully. But it's not good enough to fool my mother, who beckons us to leave. We say are goodbyes, and Remus, Sirius and Lara decide to accompany us back to the Floo.

* * *

**Jane POV**

Jane eyes Harry for a bit, after the Weasley's have left. That was a fake yawn, and she can't understand where it came from. So, she decide to ask, as this is likely one of the few opportunities were, they'll be alone.

"What was that with not willing to talk to the Weasley's?"

Harry blinks. "I wasn't evading the Weasley's."

Jane stares him down for a while. "Why where you evading your partial guardians, then?"

"I'm tired."

"The sooner we get this over with, the better, then."

Harry sighs; he probably knows that she won't give in. At this point, Jane has become concerned. His blood work shows some trouble with sleeping, more than else. And she wasn't there for him… it has been long enough. Time to show him she _is_ here for him.

"They don't know what happened. At Hogwarts, with your ex…"

"And with Myriam," she realises, understanding dawning. After all, he committed crimes, in all technicalities. To free me, yes, but crimes nonetheless. And there were enough life-threatening situations to scare a few years off one's life. "Harry, it's not like they will abandon you. Nor will we."

"It's just… They didn't know who they took in."

"You think it matters to them? The fact that your risk your life, okay, they might be upset because you nearly died. But they wouldn't not have taken you, because some madman wants your head on a stick. They already know that- "

"But not that he has come close again, twice!"

She sighs. "You have to talk to them, Harry. It's the only way. But I felt the same, when I was adopted. Those Death Eaters had me participate in their crimes; what parent would want their child to mingle with a child like that? But it doesn't matter, because they love you. Because those were all circumstances beyond your control. You and I both have made mistakes, in the past. And we have that right; we're young. What matters is that we learn from them. And that's where our guardians come in: they force us to consider all of our options, before leaping into danger. They tell us when we're wrong, and when we're right. But to do all that, they need to know."

Silence hung in the room. Jane went to the piano in the corner of the room, and started playing _Suspicious minds_.

"Fine, you're right. But… Will you stay, when I tell? And I really want to take a nap."

She nods and leaves the room. Time to report to my superiors. But before that, something else: she needs to talk to Sirius about Tonks.

* * *

*** Completely made up by me, myself and I.**

**Suspicious minds, in the version of Elvis Presley, is one of my favourite pieces of music. All credits to the artist. It describes Harry's struggle here: we're caught in a trap (…) because I love you too much (…); Harry can't talk to his guardians, because he knows they won't take lightly to him facing Voldemort voluntarily. But a huge secret like that stands in the way of any kind of friendship or familiarity. I don't know if it's clear enough, but Harry's afraid they'll either be very angry, or abandon him, because of the risk and what he has done. I'll explore this more next chapter.**

**I've been meaning to ask – is the change of perspective interesting? Is it still clear what's happening?**

**Last but not least: can you guess why they used Diffindo, instead of, for example, the killing curse? I'll explore one possible reason next chapter, but I'm curious what you think. Perhaps it's more obvious then i think.**


	25. Chapter 25

**Author's note: Last chapter I forgot to mention one thing: this playing of songs will become important. I'm going to make year 4 the year where a lot of thing which seem random at first, are suddenly not so random anymore… Also, I'm meaning to make this like obvious in hindsight, but not in first sight. So, yeah, that's one of the reasons why I need to take time off. Sorry. Truly. I know how annoying it is…**

**In my absence: there's a poll on my page, about who Harry should take to the Yule Ball. If you want anyone who isn't listed, PM, I'll add them. I'm secretly hoping for someone, but I will not count my own vote. Hope to see yours!**

**And a more urgent one: which House do you see Jane in?**

***edit* apparently, I can only have one poll in my profile page. This means that you can, for now, only vote for Jane's House. I'll stop that one when I upload next chapter, and then you'll be able to vote for the other one. Thank you for your patience!**

* * *

**Harry's POV, charity's event**

It was busy, at the neighbours. It was great fun, walking around, with nothing to worry about – for a change, you know. There seemed to be a lot of worrying to do, lately.

"Hey look, Ron," Jane said excitedly, "there's a chess match, too! Do you want to participate?"

After all, Hermione, Jane, Lara and Harry were all participating in either the show jumping or the cross country.

"Yeah mate, you should totally do it! They won't know what hit them!", Harry says excitedly.

Ron agrees, and there's that.

The first to start is the show jumping, and so they go to the stands near the arena.

"What do you have to do to win this, actually?", Sirius asks casually.

"You have to make the fastest round. If you hit the obstacle, and it breaks down or if you hit the ground before the white line of the water or jump too late, there's a penalty of four points. Those are taken into account, too. And then, if you exceed the allowed time, you get one penalty point per second," Henry replied amusedly. He'd been to enough shows to know this, although Jane and Harry rarely participated in big shows, just a few over the holidays.

"It looks difficult," Sirius said dubiously. "How high are those, anyway?"

"One meter forty," Jane replies from behind him.

Sirius eyes her quizzically, and she rolls her eyes. "4.6 feet, approximately. Honestly, why do you English insist on calculating and measuring with every body part available?"

"Well," Sirius said with a grin, "at least we know when we're making tea!"

The day prior, Jane had been cooking dinner. Sirius had come in, saying something like 'almost time for tea?' and she'd honestly thought he was talking about the beverage – but apparently, English could replace every single word with 'tea'. *

Jane muttered something under her breath. Harry thought it had to do with annoying Englishmen. Suppressing a grin, he gestured to the course. "And, Lara, what do you think?"

"I think Hermione is going to give me a hard time with this one," she replied. "She's way better in calculating a short course, with the shortest turns possible."

Harry grinned. That did sound like his female best friend. "Speaking of the devil…"

Hermione had just appeared; on the horse she was riding (she would be the first contestant to have a go). The course was, indeed, one of the hardest Harry had ever laid eyes on. It started in the left bottom corner, with a combination of two fences. Then, there was a ninety degree turn to a broad oxer, followed by water on the diagonal. After the water, there was a forty-five degree turn in the left bottom corner, at the end of the diagonal, followed by another combination of three. Then they were at the right bottom corner, and needed to ride up until another combination of two, on the other diagonal, with the finish in the left upper corner.**

All in all, there was a fair amount of room for different approaches. Hermione seemed to go for speed and safety. She let her horse go as hard as she dared on long pieces of the course, and the people in the stand watched excitedly as she cleared fence after fence, before clapping loudly when she remained without faults.

Lara frowned. "I have no idea how to top that off," she complained with a smile. Winning was not as important to her – running a round she could be proud of was far more important.

Harry smiled. "I do, but you won't like it."

Jane groaned. Apparently, she had seen the same opportunity, but she also knew her sister wouldn't like to hear about it, nor would she enjoy to watch it.

At Lara's expectant look, Harry continued: "That last combination, Hermione rode three strides in between, but I think you can manage with two. You'll have to press through, that's true, but it's possible."

"But what with the combination of three before it? I can never pick up enough speed, what with that turn before the fences- "

"Unless, you don't jump it _neat_. When you approach in a slight angle… I mean, if you start picking up speed before the triple, then keep it, turn like forty degrees, because you go to fast, you should make it. But you'll have to ride hard."

Lara blinked. "And if I don't do everything perfect, I'll fall."

Harry shrugged. "I never said it was safe!"

In the end, though, Lara had decided to run the triple like normal, but to speed the turn. Unfortunately, like Harry had predicted, she didn't have enough speed to clear the double, knocking into the fence with a hoof. With a four-point penalty and a fast time, neither thought she'd take a medal.

The rest of the afternoon was spent at the chess tournament, where Ron kept amazing everyone. Even the Weasley's, Harry and Hermione, used to Ron's skill, had to admit he did even better than usual. He won with ease, and wrote a time record on his name for shortest match in the contest.

"Hey mate! That was bloody brilliant!", Harry congratulated Ron.

Ron smiled a bit offhandedly: "Ah, no, they just weren't that good."

Hermione snickered. "Ron, that one there was once Olympic champion in chess. He's top of the world!"

Ron's ears coloured slightly at that, and Harry thought he could hear him mumble about knowing how Harry felt. Taking pity on his friend, he nudged Jane: "shouldn't we get going?"

She nodded, after congratulating Ron one more time.

The cross-country route went through a forest, through a lake, then through a maze of hedges, and ended at the entrance of what used to be a graveyard. Slightly lurid, if you asked Harry, but okay.

"The creators of those fences are certainly creative," mister Weasley said.

Jane smiled at him. "That's the intention."

There was a chess table, a planet, a lot of hedges, a cup, something that resembled a tombstone (luckily not a real one), a key, a lot of trees and a dozen of other things.

In the end, it was Harry who took the win, by half a second. Jane followed in second place. Harry had taken slightly more risks when approaching the fences, winning him some time – but, as Jane kept saying, also more dangerous.

The evening was spend talking among friends in Jane's private garden behind the embassy, eating the food she, Harry and Henry had prepared. They talked about all kinds of small things, from Bills hair (too long, according to Molly), the round of chess (brilliant, said Henry, who was a chess fan, unlike his two adopted children), the show-jumping (should've gone with Harry's suggestion…), the cross-country (brilliant round, Harry) and the upcoming Quidditch game (Ireland is better!).

* * *

**Jane's POV, her house, five o'clock in the morning**

Jane had fully intended to sleep in. With emphasis on _intended_.

Why? Simply because she'd had a bad summer. First, there was the near-death experience of her friend, Harry Potter. Now that was nothing new, but the fact that it was because of relatives was, in fact, new to her. The trial that had followed – both of his guardians and his godfather, albeit for other crimes – had been a stressful time. Combine that with late nights in the embassy, because Fudge had issues with the innocence of said Godfather, and another near-death experience for Harry on her territory; she thought she deserved to sleep in. Unfortunately, something – or someone, she thought sourly – had woken her. Trying to lay as still as possible, she tried to determine what it was.

A sound. Of someone in the corridor.

_Marvellous_, she thought. _Isn't that what everyone wants, an intruder in the middle of the night, only a – one! one, for God's sake *mental facepalm* - week after said attack on her friend?_

She opened her eyes, squinting through the dark of her room. The handle of her bedroom door moved!

It was enough to make even a sane person paranoid.

Quietly, she came out of bed. She needed a place to hide… Unfortunately, there were limited options: the curtains and underneath her bed. The first one was still relatively visible, the second one meant she was trapped. _Not really compelling._ Instead, she chose to stand next the door. That meant, when the unknown person entered the room, the door would be between them. She could use it as a weapon, or try to sneak out when he or she went to examine her now empty bed. Or she could hold him or her at wand point.

When the intruder snuck in, she took a moment to notice the person was a little taller than she was, and walked swiftly to the bed. Until, of course, she tapped with her wand on the back of said person's neck.

"Show me your hands," she said frostily.

"Jeez, no reason to scare me," a familiar voice whispered.

Closing the door, turning on the light, she replied: "what form does your Patronus take?"

"A stag. And it's way too early for this, Jane."

"Is it now?!", she whisper-screamed. "Perhaps you'll do me the honour of _not_ scaring me to death, then?" She moved to stand next to him, in front of her bed.

"Sorry," he smiled sheepishly.

She took a closer look at him. He was pale, dark bags under his eyes. He was trembling, and his eyes looked bloodshot.

"What happened?", she asked seriously, pulling him onto the bed next to her when he swayed.

"Didn't it strike you as odd that the attackers used _Diffindo_, and not something more sinister?"

"Well, perhaps they don't like their left," she replied, stone-faced, confused. Seeing his uncomprehending look, she amended: "Sinister means left in Latin."

Harry made an impatient gesture.

"Can't this wait until a more reasonable time?!"

"No! Think! Tell me, for the sake of my sanity, I'm paranoid!"

Jane blinked at him. "Your sanity is going to improve if you're paranoid?!"

Harry sighed impatiently.

"Okay, okay. I've thought about it, but just drew a blank. Still do."

Harry muttered something under his breath. Jane thought – rightfully so – that it was not a compliment.

"Okay, hear me out. What kind of wound would have existed, had I not been in the way?"

Jane blinked. "… A sliced throat?" She still had no idea what her friend just realized.

"Right. And is it possible to… Alter this wound? To make someone else look guilty?"

Jane stiffened. Off course.

"Are you saying that, if the curse had hit its target – Sirius would've been dead. And Remus… They wanted to make it look as if a werewolf did it! Sweet Merlin," she whispered faintly. "They thought you'd be on your own after that."

"Or, if Sirius was the target, no one would believe the government was behind it. I'm 'grieve-stricken', Remus 'killed' him. Who is left to defend the truth?"

Jane closed her eyes. "So, the British government is involved." It was bad enough that they had locked an innocent man up in hell. No, now they had a hand – at least by giving intel – in an attempted murder, on the same person.

And she worked for them.

Indirectly, but still working for them.

Turning to the boy next to her, she frowned as she noted he was still trembling. And was it the light, or was his scar slightly more red – or more accurately, the skin around it?

"How did you come to that realisation?", she asked softly.

"Well, a bit after you left, Ron returned – forgot his sweater – and then he said that in Divination, last year, during his finals, the teacher had said something about a servant, hidden for twelve years, joining his master and allowing him to rise again… I – normally, I wouldn't be bothered, but tonight, my scar hurt during this vision…"

"Vision about what?", Jane asked suspiciously. She had a good idea what he was trying to hide from her.

Harry fidgeted a bit. "Murder."

Jane eyed him a bit. "Your murder," she realised.

Harry shrugged half-heartedly.

She was starting to seriously hate it when he did that – then again, she wasn't better with her own safety.

* * *

**Jane POV, next day**

Before going to the Ministry, she said her temporary goodbyes to Harry, as he would stay with the Weasley's until he went to Hogwarts. She stopped working and went to the World Championships Quidditch. Hopefully, despite the rather short night, she would be able to relax.

But first things first, she thought, as she entered the building. It was way more empty than normally, and she proceeded until the office of Head of the DMLE, meeting up with the secretary. She'd tried to get here in a shorter time span, but it had proven impossible. Quidditch.

The secretary formally announced her. "Madame Bones, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Jane Davidson, ambassador for France in Magical Britain, is here to see you about an urgent matter."

Her first impression of the woman was that she looked vaguely familiar, a bit like a girl in Hufflepuff she'd seen, from Harry's year. She wore a monocle, and looked fair and yet strict. She had close-cropped grey hair.

"Madame ambassador, pleased to meet you," the woman said, giving her a firm hand and closing the door behind the secretary. "What can we do for you?"

More good impressions. No twisting and turning around the matter for some time, like Fudge would've done. "I was wondering how the investigation regarding an attack on my premises fared," Jane said slowly. She had the horrible feeling she was right and Fudge didn't talk to Madame Bones, certainly when her eyebrows twisted in a knot.

"What attack?", she asked curtly.

Jane bowed her head, hiding a furious expression. When her face was blank again, she looked up again. "Three days ago, late at night, I got a notification that two people had arrived by Portkey in the Atrium of the embassy. They were attacked, and one of them, a fourteen-year-old, was severely injured. I had Aurors following the trail of the attackers, and they returned with what appears to be a piece of Acromantula silk, interwoven with protective spells, the standard outfit for Hitwizards."

Madame Bones was silent for a while.

Jane continued: "I hope you understand, Madame, that I value the safety of those who reside on the grounds of the embassy. This is a sensitive matter."

Madame Bones blinked. "But of course. How is the injured?"

"He has recovered, but it was a close call."

"Then I hope you will bring over my sincerest apologies. I'll have Aurors look into this. Who were attacked?"

Jane grimaced. "That's the other reason for secrecy. It concerns Harry Potter and Sirius Black."

Madame Bones frowned. "How is mister Black's trial faring?"

"He's declared innocent," she replied curtly.

Madame Bones nodded. "I'll have to question them," she replied.

Jane frowned. "Prime Minister Fudge has their written testimonies."

Madame Bones looked furious when they concluded their meeting. _Fudge probably should watch out with her_, Jane thought, _she doesn't look like she appreciates his stunt. Then again, who would?_

With that, she walked out and wandered through the corridors with Auror's offices. It was possible that Tonks was out, and even likely, but Jane didn't want to come here another time, because she'd just made Fudge's life more difficult and she had no intention of meeting again soon – at least not until he had cooled down.

Coming to a halt, she noticed a door with name plates 'Kingsley Shacklebolt and Nymphadora Tonks'. She smiled, remembering how the woman had indeed tried to use her partners name to fool her. It was not like she minded – she used an alias all the time, after all. She knocked.

"Come in," a deep voice said.

Certainly not Tonks' voice. She entered nonetheless. The room contained two desks, a lot of floating memo's, and a blackboard. Two people stood before the latter.

"Sorry for interrupting," she apologised softly.

"Not at all," Tonks exclaimed, knocking her ink jar over on the way to the door – she'd had to walk between the desks – and closing it, while pulling Jane inside. She muttered a charm, pointing at the doors. "Privacy charm."

Jane nodded. "Smart. Jane Davidson, ambassador for Magical France," she amended to presumably Kingsley.

"Kingsley Shacklebolt, what can we do for you?"

"In regards of your request…", Jane started.

"You can speak freely," Tonks interrupted her.

"Right. Sirius Black, after being proven innocent back in France, will be pleased to meet with you and your mother. I had to add that he's looking forward to having you both – and, of course, your father, too – at dinner, sometime next week…?"

"I'll owl him when I've seen mum – she's a Healer, you know- "

Jane smiled lightly. "As is my father, so no need to explain. Now, then, delighted to meet you. You can just say that this conversation was about my testimony in regards of an attack by British Hitwizards on my grounds, a week ago."

They both blinked and looked worried. "Don't worry so much, I've got security… I'll be off, then. See you around."

Checking her watch, she realised she needed to make haste, and asked Treaty, her house-elf, to Apparate them to the place where the game would be held.

* * *

**Jane POV, a few minutes later**

At first, it was relaxing – admittedly, there was an incident she'd had to smother with the Bulgarian Prime Minister and Fudge giving out half the seats of the Top Box, and out of pure sympathy, she'd translated when Fudge was introducing the guests in the Top Box – but aside from that moment, it was hard, even as a non-Quidditch fan, _not_ to enjoy; the atmosphere was simply to buzzing with anticipation. The stadium was marvellous, and she'd had to work hard to shield herself from all the excitement coming from the people. Nonetheless, it was a marvellous sight, from the Top Box. Admittedly, she had a hard time being civil to Lucius Malfoy, but hey, you can't have everything.

After the match, she had accepted the invitation to stay with the Weasley's, in the tent for the girls. It had been a great night, even though the people kept celebrating: the company did her well.

That was, of course, until all hell broke loose.

"Wake up!", the alarmed shout from none else than Arthur Weasley had her up on her feet before she even had time to process it. She heard screaming outside the tent; the festivities had ceased. Trouble was brewing.

"Get to the forest!", Arthur said. "We're going to help the Ministry!"

Jane went with them. Catching his glance, she said: "I'm trained for attacks. Don't worry, I've beaten Auror Moody once…"

He seemed somewhat mollified, but not entirely. He could use her guard of Aurors, too. Anyway, they came closer and the fight begun.

Curses where thrown left and right, and in the dark, determining who is friend and who is foo is difficult. Every now and then, green light shines over the crowd, possibly in an attempt to scare them. Jane falls into a litany: dodge, stun, duck, spell and the whole thing over again. Her fighting stile generally relies on casting a shield and rebounding, but she has no idea how long she can call on it.

A Death Eater goes down, then another one. A curse flew over her left shoulder, she threw back a stunner of her own. The Death Eater dodged, and she narrowed her eyes. This one was better than the other she had fought. He sent another curse, she dodged. She sent a curse, he blocked. Problem. They couldn't continue like that. Allowing her wand to drop, he sent a curse flying to her wand arm.

But she wasn't there, she'd leapt forward the moment she'd seen the curse coming her way, and Jane stabbed with her wand in an eye hole of the mask. He screamed. Satisfied, she put the man in the full-body bind before moving on.

Distinctly, she heard shouting, then she was flat on the ground.

Looking back, she saw Bill taking the curse that had been meant for her heart, in his arm. It started blooding profusely, and Jane took a rock laying on the campsite and threw at the attacker. Getting to her feet, folding her shield around them, she asked him: "are you okay?"

"Yes, watch yourself!"

And the fight continued. Jane started to tire, her wand arm feeling like lead, as she struggled to keep her shield up in the air and invisible. She didn't want her talent to be known by everyone. At some point in time, she realised her opponents where considerably slower, and the fight was soon over after that, when people started screaming – the real culprits had gotten away, of course. Cursing under her breath, she quickly sent her shield up, trying to keep the Muggles from falling. But it proved unnecessary, as they had levitating spells ready.

Then, a strange silence.

Whirling around, wand in her hands, she stared.

The Dark Mark had appeared, above the forest.

Jane stumbled forward, and as Arthur Apparated away to the place where the Mark was, she was sucked with him. Before she could gather herself after the landing, she heard "STUPEFY!", from all directions, and someone yelled "DUCK!"

"STOP!", she bellowed. She recognised that voice. And she was proven correct, when a pale Ron, Hermione and Harry looked up at her, together with a girl she didn't recognise but looked vaguely familiar, who was mumbling things under her breath.

Bartemius Crouch eyed her, a mad glint in his eyes. "They must've called the Mark! Who - "

"Stop it," she said waspishly. "I don't know how you do things here, Crouch, but in _my _country, we don't accuse people just because they were at a certain place at a certain time."

Ignoring his spluttering, she amended: "and when the daughter of our PM is involved, I'd be careful."

She'd recognised the girl now – Justine Magnolis.

"What happened?" she asked Harry.

"We heard a voice saying something, standing there- "

"Oh- "Crouch interrupted.

She cut him off. "Check them, then. Stunner went straight through there."

"As-tu vu quelque chose?", Jane asks her. [Have you seen something?]

"Oui, la bas, il y était un homme. Il a dit quelque chose, mais je n'ai pas compris." [Yes, over there, there stood a man. He said something, but I didn't understand him.]

Jane nodded. "There you go, then."

Unfortunately, that was when they found Winky with Harry's wand.

* * *

**French Prime Minister Dubois POV, early morning**

There's frantic knocking on the door of her bedroom, and she knows it's nothing good. Good news is no reason to wake people up at five o'clock in the morning. Getting some clothes on from a nearby chair, she opens the door. Luckily, her husband sleeps like a log.

"Madame, Jane Davidson est arrivé avec ta fille. C'est urgent." [Mrs., Jane Davidson has arrived with your daughter. It's urgent.]

The Prime Minister nods her thanks and urgently wakes her husband, an Englishman named Edward. They hurry along the corridor, running and forgetting all about their dignity, until, in front of their office, they are confronted with their girl, sleeping soundly on the couch next to Jane Davidson. Gently, Edward picks her up and walks her to her room, assured that his daughter is fine.

"Sorry about the late – or early – hour, madame," Jane says, as Edward enters again.

"What happened?", the PM asks sharply, as her husband moves to stand next to her.

"There was a riot after the World Championships Quidditch. The Ministry did their best – sending the children to the forest, where they were supposedly safe – "

"Supposedly?!"

Jane grimaces. "The Dark Mark rose above the forest."

Prime Minister Dubois falls in a chair. "Who is death?", she asks softly.

"No one, but… Well, your daughter got separated from Madame Mallemour, ran into Harry and his friends, and Harry invited her to stay with them, instead of wandering through the forest alone – they could go find her afterwards. Then, when they arrived at a clearing, they decided to wait for news. The person who cast the spell for the Mark, was right behind the trees."

The Prime Minister closes her eyes. So close to her little girl… Well, she would become seventeen in the first week of September, but still. Her husband grabs her shoulder reassuringly.

"The Ministry apparated and shot stunners, but they only hit a house-elf belonging to Bartemius Crouch- "

"Crouch Sr.?!", Edward half-shouted.

Jane raised an eyebrow at him, to tired to do anything else.

"There was a whole… There's a story to the man. He was about to become the next PM, as he was a popular head of DMLE. But then… His son was proven to be a Death Eater. There was a trial, but his reputation was never the same – although it's said the trial was pretty ruthless. Then he was put on another department… He became head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation, while Fudge became PM. But some people say he's as ruthless as the Death Eaters, although he was very opposed to their ways."

Jane tilted her head. "I can see that, he wasn't exactly… Charming. He frightened me, to be honest."

There's a moment of silence. Jane finally amended: "I've got a bad feeling about this year, if I may be so bold. First there's an attack on Harry on my grounds- "

"What?", Prime Minister Dubois asks her sharply.

Jane blinked. "I'm assuming Fudge didn't follow through with that, either. There was an attack on Harry and Sirius, three days ago. Harry got injured, but he's fine. When we followed their attackers, we discovered a cloth, made of Acromantula silk."

Edward looked confused. His wife explains softly: "English Hitwizards are the only ones allowed to wear that."

"And then, Harry reported pain in his scar – the last time that happened was when Voldemort was at Hogwarts – and now, for the first time in more then a decade, we've seen the Dark Mark."

The PM shook her head. "It's not an all-out war yet, so I can't pull you back yet- "

"With all due respect," Jane interrupted, "if war comes, I'll stay. I have friends there, and they'll not leave, they'll not go down without a fight. I can not maintain my position, that I understand, but that doesn't mean I'm coming back here."

Mrs. Dubois sighed. It's not like she didn't expect it, but she had hope. "Let's put that conversation of for now – it's still early. I will, however, increase your private security. The signs that war is brewing are here. It makes no sense to wait until death is knocking on your door."

Jane objected, but the PM interrupted her: "My daughter will be there, too. Think of it as security for both of you- "

"How come?", Jane asks curiously.

"The Tri-wizard tournament is coming back." At Jane's quizzical look, she explains: "this is a game, where students from Beauxbatons, Hogwarts and Durmstrang participate in. They battle for the glory, and the tournament's cup. The prize this year is a thousand galleons. They have to fulfil three tasks."

"And since Durmstrang's head _was_ a Death Eater, a little extra security is never far away," Edward added.

Jane eyes her suspiciously. "And why was it disbanded in the first place?"

Edward sniggers. He wasn't a big fan of bringing the tournament back, having lost a student in his year because of it. His wife, on the other hand, thought it was good for the international relationships and the children attending – more diversity and all. But he knows that Jane won't like the Tournament when she hears people died in it, and it's nice to hear someone else giving her the same arguments.

"Well, there were some – people died in it, sometimes. But it's much safer now. There's an age line, so only over seventeen can participate. And you can't convince the one who is electing that your seventeen when you're not, it's impossible…"

Jane flinched. Sometimes, she felt like 'impossible' was a word not to be spoken around Harry Potter – it seemed he could do it, always. Sometimes it felt like she should just bottle up his luck and throw it at Voldemort; it would safe them a lot of trouble.

Their meeting was concluded not much later.

* * *

**Remus POV, a few hours later**

The morning after the World Championships, it was no surprise Sirius was up as early as six o'clock. He would want to know the results, that was something Remus knew. He also knew he would probably have to endure a play by play analysis of the game – sometimes, Harry was just as much of Quidditch nut as Sirius. And James.

The thought about his friend quickly dispelled all other thoughts of trying to sleep, and Remus decided for a nice long shower. That would relax him… As he was getting ready in the bathroom, after his 'long' shower (Sirius had, for the fun of it, turned off the warm water, because he was bored with the waiting for the owl with the newspaper), he heard the noise of a window opening and closing again. Expecting Sirius to yell upstairs who had won, he waited patiently.

Five minutes.

Ten.

There came no noise at all from the kitchen. More than a little anxious, Remus descended the stairs and walked towards the kitchen. Sirius stood there. He'd obviously not heard Remus entering. He stood there, in the morning light, frozen, with the newspaper in his hand. Something in his expression reminded Remus of the past, of days at Hogwarts, when the newspaper arrived and announced the death of someone they had known.

"Sirius?"

Wordlessly, he brandished the newspaper in Remus' direction.

He didn't even need to look at the headline.

The Dark Mark stared at him from the front page, and he didn't even need to ask where it had appeared.

It took minutes, but finally, he snapped out of the daze and begun reading the article. Or at least, some words sprung out it: 'mayhem', 'Death Eaters', 'Dark Mark' and finally, the worst – oh, why did it have to be there – 'several bodies'.

"Let's go to Molly's," Remus finally said hoarsely.

* * *

**Sirius POV, the Burrow**

How he'd managed to land himself in this place, he'd forgotten. In fact, ever since he'd received the newspaper, it seemed nothing registered properly. Molly was beside herself with worry – of course she was, all her children, her husband, and even two friends of the family where there, alongside with various people they knew. It was like someone had announced it was war again, and Sirius felt like the time of peace had been way to short. He hoped none of Molly's children, nor her husband, nor Hermione had been involved.

He was not foolish enough to believe Harry hadn't been implicated in any way. That kid would never have just let those _people_ go on, when Muggles where floating in the air. He was too much like James for that, too much like Lily too – but at least, she'd have recognised this was not her fight; at least not _yet_.

He made himself no illusions Harry had at least tried to fight. He was only fourteen, Defence was rubbish at Hogwarts. How could he possibly survive a fight with a Death Eater? But he had to. Sirius had met his Godson, and he had warmed his hart in a way he'd thought impossible. It reminded him forcefully of the Maurader's glory days at Hogwarts.

Speaking of which, Remus was watching him anxiously again. Probably thought Sirius was going into shock. He'd always been the voice of reason, of wisdom, in their group. That didn't mean he wasn't a fierce opponent, oh no. Many had made that mistake. They always ended up in a prank… Moony could spend days and days in the Library, to be sure no one would be harmed (permanently) by their pranks. Remus was the one who told them they were out of line. He was also the first to retaliate when someone was badmouthing his friends (morstly with words, though); although he was far more friendly with that than James or Sirius had been. Moony was also always the worrywart, something that hadn't changed.

After half an hour of waiting, finally, something moved at the end of the street. Sirius breaths out as he recognised the typical raven-black hair, looking like he'd just come out of a tornado or something. Relieved, he saw Harry had no visible injuries, although he looked tired – and who would sleep well, after such a night? He quickly did a head count, and sighed contently when he realised all who had left had returned, before stiffening when he didn't see Jane. There was another man walking with them, though, and he looked vaguely familiar.

"Arthur!", Molly screamed, running towards him.

He made his way out of the house, too, followed by Remus and gave Harry a bone-crushing hug.

"You okay, kid?", he asked, his voice low. It sounded like it didn't belong to him.

He felt Harry awkwardly patting his back. "Fine."

Behind him, Remus muttered something that sounded like 'always saying that', so he broke free from the hug and held Harry at arm's length.

The teen rolled his eyes. "Truly, fine." Then he groaned, because Remus held him in a tight embrace now.

Next to them, the Weasley's where doing the same. Sirius is looking at the extra guy, who holds his distance and is keeping a sharp eye on the environment. Harry – after being released by Moony, and making a show of counting his ribs – smiles, and says: "This is Jean, Jane's private guard."

"And where is she? Not injured, I hope?", Molly asks anxiously.

Harry shakes his head. "She had to report to the French PM, and she decided to bring the daughter of the PM along, while she was at it. She's probably on her way back to the embassy. I imagine there's a lot of political work to do."

"Like what?", Ron asks.

"Like smoothing things over with allies – tell them they're investigating it. Making sure they can complain to someone because someone high up is injured. That kind of thing," Harry replies.

"Sounds fun, Gred," one of the twins says sarcastically.

Sirius tries to catch Remus' eye, who nods. "Molly, I hope you don't mind, but his guardians would like to have Harry at home," Sirius says. He hates lying, but they don't want Dumbledore to know Harry is not with the Dursleys anymore, not before they know why he wanted him there in the first place.

"Of course," she says understandingly. "You can use the floo."

It doesn't take Harry long before he says his goodbyes to his friends.

* * *

*** I've only been once to England, but something similar happened to me then. I hope I'm not offending anyone, because it's meant like a joke about culture differences. In hindsight, it was funny to me, and I could laugh with. I hope those reading this can, too.**

**** I truly hope you can follow the course. I'm not that good at describing. Also, I may have breached some rules of show-jumping, as all info on them comes from Wikipedia (again…).**

**So, until the beginning of October, it is... Remember there's an open poll, and thank you for reading!**


	26. Chapter 26

**Author's note: here we are again! This chapter is, at least for a part and maybe as a whole, going to review the past events. Harry will tell Remus and Sirius about his past school years, both before Hogwarts and at Hogwarts. This may sound boring, as apart from their reactions there will be nothing new, but since this story is a year old, I need the reminder to connect the dots, so to speak. Maybe this comes in useful for you, as a reader, too. If not, I hope that at least my attempt at humour will make it up to you. The second reason I'm doing this is because I like 'reading the books' stile of fics, so if you have any recommendations, I'll be delighted to hear them!**

_**Of importance: **_**I've changed my mind over Hermione's house. I've checked the story and changed all references I could find to her being a Ravenclaw. She is now a Gryffindor. I'm doing this because, when I made her a Ravenclaw, I had a story line with house-unity. The idea was that Harry/ Ron would be Gryffindors, Hermione a Ravenclaw, Lara a Hufflepuff and Jane a Slytherin. Their friendship could've made the house's united. I discarded that idea, because I believe that Jane would've noticed Quirrel being possesed by Voldemort, and I found no way around that. Since the second Wizarding War is already brewing in fourth year, I don't believe that house-unity starting now in the story would stand a chance. Hence the change in Houses.**

**As always, I'm available via PM and review. Thank you for reading/reviewing/PMing (is that a word? Probably not. Sorry, Hermione).**

* * *

**Harry POV, Jane's house, early in the morning after the WC Quidditch**

Even though it was early in the morning, Henry and Lara were already awake. To Harry's delight, Jane stumbled out of the floo right after them, looking deadly tired but otherwise alright.

"Jane!", Henry and Lara chorused, throwing themselves on her.

Harry grinned and grabbed her arm, pulling her out of the suffocating hug before engulfing her in a hug himself.

"What happened to you, all got some essence of idiotism?!", she groaned forcefully.

Harry snickered. "No, the Daily Prophet reported 'several dead bodies' and stuff like that, so they are probably glad you're still alive."

Jane blinked sluggishly. Harry could see her glance at the relieved faces of Remus and Sirius and knew what she thought – _why are they even worried about me?_ – and answered her unspoken question: "That's what friends are for."

"That, and breaking you out of jail," Sirius joked.

The joke fell flat, however, as both Lara and Henry paled visibly and Jane tensed up. Without even saying a word – very uncharacteristic – Henry all but ran from the room, and Harry raised an eyebrow in Jane's direction. She shrugged, as if to say: _if you want to know, ask him yourself_.

Harry left the room just on the moment that Sirius recovered from the shock and apologised, before asking why the topic was sensitive. Sometimes Sirius and Ron were very much alike – especially when tact was involved. He thought he knew where Henry had gone to: to the bedroom he had shared with his late wife, Myriam. He was proven correct, when he saw the man sitting on the bed through the open door. Hesitantly, he knocked.

Henry looked up. "Ah, Harry… Come in," he said, in a desolate voice.

Harry walked in, cautiously. He was aware that he might be intruding, that he was about to ask the man personal questions, that this might be none of his business. At the same time, he suspected it had to do with what he'd done so many years ago, and he wondered what bothered the man about it. He decided to wait for a bit, on the bed, while the man was trying to gather his thoughts.

"So, what brings you here?", Henry finally asked distractedly.

"What brings you here?", Harry countered.

"It's my fault," Henry sighed, looking as though he knew there was no arguing with Harry once he wanted to know something.

"What exactly?", Harry asked frowning.

"The fact that you had to break my daughter – foster daughter – out of jail. The fact that you had to commit crimes to do so – like hacking sites. You were on your own. I should have been there for you. I should have done more for Jane. Instead, I sat moping around – "

"Mourning your late wife," Harry interrupted. "Look, Henry, you lost the love of your life! I can cut you some slack in not being the most perceptive in a time like that!"

Henry smiled sadly. "Jane said you wouldn't blame me."

"I made the choice not to come to you – or anyone else, for that matter. I made the choice to commit said crimes. It was not your fault Jane was falsely accused. It was not your fault you didn't keep an eye out for me, the night I hacked those sites – after all, your foster daughter had nearly died, twice. Your wife had died. I understand."

Henry sighed. "I know… But sometimes, it feels like you should blame me."

"Nonsense," Harry said firmly, eliciting a smile from Henry.

"Suppose we shall go back," Henry said. "Because I seem to have gathered you didn't talk about your past, which means we are going to do so. Right now."

Harry mentally groaned. _Lovely._

* * *

**Jane's POV, meanwhile**

"Did I say something wrong?", Sirius asked, after Harry left – following Henry, presumably. _At least they'll finally talk it out._

Jane and Lara exchanged a glance, wondering what to say. "Technically, you couldn't have known, but the topic of 'prison' is rather… sensitive, in this household," Jane said carefully.

"Why?", Remus asked surprised – and a little suspicious.

Jane and Lara exchanged another glance, but neither said anything this time – Lara felt like it wasn't her place, and Jane had an intense dislike of thinking back to that time.

"Has any of you been imprisoned?", Remus askes, even more suspicious.

"None of us have ever been sentenced to prison," Jane answered evasively. Technically, neither of their crimes had made it until a court to be sentenced in to begin with.

Remus looked even more suspicious, having caught on the loophole in her story. Sirius looked like he was going to agree.

Jane decided to not give them the chance to ask any more questions, before they had spoken to Harry. This was his story, too, after all. "Let me floo the Weasleys and ask if Ron and Hermione can come over," she said instead. _That way they can 'enjoy' the trip down memory's lane, too…_

The floo talk with Molly was short. She only asked if Harry was alright, giving Jane the opening to answer that he wanted to see his friends, which wasn't even a lie. It took a while before Hermione and Ron showed up, and until then, Jane kept her head in the fire, as an excuse not to talk to the people in her kitchen. By the time she pulled it back, and Ron and Hermione showed up, Henry and Harry had returned.

Harry looked around, then eyed her for a bit. "I would like to show you some memories from before Hogwarts. Some things happened, that are rather hard to talk about. It's easier if you experience it with me. Jane, you think you can do this?"

"Sure," she replied calmly. "Whenever you are ready."

Harry looked uncomfortable. "Perhaps we can start with my memory of how we met?"

To which Jane nodded. Jane closed her eyes, and concentrated on that day, 'broadcasting' it to the others. She heard gasps of surprise, and there she saw all of them, walking inside the memory.

"It's like being in a Pensive!", Remus exclaimed surprised.

Jane smiled. "Thanks."

_**They saw a young, seven-year old Dudley Dursley walking over the playgrounds. Although, strutting might have been a better word. They watched as he proceeded to walk to an edge of the playgrounds. A small Jane could be seen, eyeing them, suspicion plain in her eyes. Then, after a while, she followed them. They saw a young Harry, being surprised by Dudley, who immediately started insulting his late parents.**_

"Such a charming young boy," Jane muttered sarcastically, to which Harry, Ron and Hermione snickered.

"Only Petunia thinks so," Harry replied grinning.

Ron cheered as she punched the boy on his nose. "Well worth the detention!"

Sirius agreed loudly with that, with Remus fondly shaking his head. "And what excuse did you have, when you hexed people?"

Sirius pretended not to hear him, but Harry grimaced.

"As long as you don't make a habit out of it," Henry chided softly. He knew fighting wasn't something Jane did, but still, a warning wasn't far away.

"Stand aside, please," Ron roared with laughter, "oh, this is brilliant."

Sirius howled with laughter as they saw how Jane weaselled herself out of it. "That's a Marauder worthy excuse!"

Remus was softly snickering by now, while Harry made a show of pouting in disappointment.

_**The story continued, showing one of Harry's memories now, when he went to open the door for two police officers**_.

Jane glanced at Henry, whose face could have been carved out of stone. Well, it was only five years ago.

_**Harry showed them in, and soon after, they were questioning him about his whereabouts, enemies Myriam might have had, enemies Jane might have had, and then, at last, they broke the news of Myriam's death.**_

Condolences came from all corners of the room, as they watched Harry step into the police car.

_**The memory continued with the long wait until, finally, they got the news Jane was out of surgery.**_

"Wow, six hours!", Ron said, with his typical tact – or lack thereof.

Jane just shrugged, not knowing what to say. Harry, Henry and Lara wore their ultimate poker face.

_**A fast forward to fourteen days later, when Harry had to break the news of Myriam's death to a freshly awake Jane.**_

"Well, that sucks," Sirius said lightly.

Henry apologised – he had been tired, really tired, and hadn't woken up. Sleep didn't come well around that time, with nightmares of his late wife and possible death of his foster daughter.

Jane, however, tilted her head. "You know, you broke the news in the best way possible. That's the way they teach doctors – fast, not a lot of details, calm. Offer support after it. It's quite impressive."

Harry mumbled something inaudible about 'lot of good it did'. Jane grimaced. Her imprisonment should come up soon enough.

_**They stared in shock as two officers came into the hospital room a week later, arresting Jane.**_

"I never thanked you for calling my lawyer," she said pensively.

Harry snorted. "There was too much shit to sort out afterwards."

"Language," Remus admonished.

Jane stole a glance at Sirius, whose face could've been carved out of stone. It probably reminded him of his own imprisonment.

Ron snorted at the so-called motive that was given. "Seriously?! Are they going to suspect everyone who ever had a quarrel with their mother? Prison is gonna be full then!"

Jane smiled faintly.

_**They listened intently as Harry listened in on a conversation between Peter and Henry.**_

"Eavesdropping is rude, Harry," Remus admonished. Harry quickly apologised, but Henry waved it off.

"What are they on about?", Hermione asked bewildered.

Jane sighed. "Because I can't remember the even, I'm susceptible to 'suggestion'. They tell me what they think happened, I start to believe it. Because I start to conjure images when I hear it, which then seem like something that happened."

She deliberately left out – for now, at least – that they did a lot to reinforce their suggestion.

_**They watched as Harry and Peter arrived at the prison, only to be informed of a riot.**_

"Never took you for the kind of person to start a riot," Lara said softly to her sister, who flinched. This was a bad memory, and she couldn't even remember all of it – but Harry did, unfortunately.

_**They watched as young, nine-year old Harry went upstairs to the roof, alone. There was no sound to be heard as Harry was talking to Jane.**_

"I'm not safe?", Hermione asked bewildered. "What on earth are you on about?"

"Oh, I don't know, 'Mione, the fact that I supposedly killed my foster mother, perhaps?", Jane replied sarcastically, before apologising. It wasn't Hermione's fault, no one was at fault.

_**They watched as police officers hurried on the roof, pointing their guns at the young girl.**_

"There's no need for that!", Lara exclaimed. "And Harry, next time, don't go standing for officers wanting to fire!"

Harry shrugged. He preferred not to have to repeat it, but he would if need be.

_**They watched as Harry used a laptop to hack several sites, and read and read.**_

"Sweet Merlin," Hermione groaned, "they are actively trying to get you to confess!"

"More than that," Harry replied in a hoarse voice, "the methods they used are qualified as psychological torture."

"Lovely," Ron replied, wrinkling his nose.

_**A drunk Harry was arrested.**_

Jane raised an eyebrow. "How did you do it?"

"Easy enough, I just held a bit of wine in my mouth. They never did the blood test, and even if they did, the lab was not going to give them results before the plan was set in motion. Before that, I hacked the system of the electronic locks and made sure they were all open. Then all I had to do was wait for the change of guards and simply walk out under the cover of the fire alarm."

Ron gaped at Harry.

"That's impressive," Remus said, "but I hope you don't use that skill again!"

_**A memory from Lara was played now, and they watched as the police officers tried to determine where Jane had gone. There were some snickers as Henry scolded the police officers. The scene went on with the discovery that Harry was gone, too.**_

"Busy, yes! With questioning a nine-year old twenty-one hours a day!", Harry exclaimed angrily. He'd never forgiven them for that.

_**They listened intently as Harry told Jane she was framed, followed by their arrest – again. Harry and Jane's names where cleared, and then they watched the sailing trip. All seemed perfect, until water started getting in. They left in the life boats, but those sank too.**_

"I blame Harry's luck", Jane said laughingly.

"As if yours is better!"

_**They watched as the youngsters drifted around, attached to a piece of drifting woods, until a helicopter pulled them out of the water. The next scene was in the hospital, where Jane just woke. They watched as her sister lied about Harry – Lara flinched at that – and then had a good laugh when Henry asked her to try not to get killed for some time. Jane unhooked herself from the machines and walked out of the room, towards Harry's. They listened to the explanation of Harry's condition.**_

"Perhaps this isn't the right time for the biology lesson," Harry supplied politely, fighting back a grin.

"Trust Harry to find one of the deadliest poisonous animals, which only rarely drift into the North Sea," Jane said sourly.

Harry grinned and bowed, laughing at the face she made.

_**The memories gradually faded from view, and all involved suddenly found themselves back at the kitchen table.**_

Sirius shook his head. "I really hope your Hogwarts years are not like that…" Catching the look on Harry's face – it told an entirely different tale – he groaned. "Well, it's not like you go around battling troll or something…"

"You did?!", Remus exclaimed.

"It was an emergency," Harry said softly. He didn't feel like arguing; the previous memories had brought back a lot of bad things, and he was a bit rattled by it all.

"Perhaps we should have lunch first," Jane suggested, sensing his discomfort. "This rather tiring," she amended. It was true, though, that 'showing' so many people things were more tiring than one. But she had known that, or suspected it at least.

Lunch was a silent affair; most thought how they'd nearly never met Harry or Jane, for that matter. Henry thought of his late wife, and how the upcoming years would fall with Sirius and Remus. Lara just quietly watched her sister and Harry, who made a good effort to look unruffled, but where clearly rattled.

Then, there was a knock on the door. Jane blinked, drew her wand and started moving towards it, only to be stopped by Henry. He went to get it instead, ignoring the annoyed huff she gave him – don't pamper me! – and threw the door wide open.

"Ah, hello, sir. My name is Nymphadora Tonks, and I'm looking for Sirius Black?"

Henry looked back at Jane, who nodded. She was speaking the truth.

"Nymphadora – "

"Don't call me Nymphadora!"

"Tonks," Jane continued as if she hadn't been interrupted, "look who I've found!" She gestured to Sirius.

"Well, look at you, all grown up. You're so much like cousin Andromeda," he replied, studying her.

She walked towards him and stumbled over a chair on her way. "I thought, I step by to get to know you at lunch, but seems you're busy."

"Oh, join us, Tonks!" Harry says. "We're reviewing our" – he gestured to Ron, Hermione and him – "Hogwarts years. They are quite… interesting."

"So, I've heard," she replies, grinning, "Chamber of Secrets and all that."

Only Jane noticed the look on Harry's face, the topic was still sensitive. The fact that not he, but his friends had been the target, for no other reason than being his friends, had hit home hard.

Remus, meanwhile, raised an eyebrow. "Isn't that a myth?"

"Well, myths can hold some truth," Jane chimed in mysteriously.

Harry muttered something that sounded suspiciously like 'if only they stayed a myth'. Remus overheard and frowned at him, but he gave nothing away.

"Well, a round of introductions!", Sirius said happily, "the greying gentleman on my side here is Remus Lupin, whom I went to school with. On my other side sits Harry Potter, with next to him Hermione Granger and next to her Ron Weasley. Across Harry Potter sits Jane Davidson, with on one side her sister Lara and on the other Henry, her foster father."

Ten minutes later, lunch is finished, and they start again.

_**They watched as Jane went for her fridge to get some apple juice, only to find Harry behind it.**_

"How did you get in?", Tonks asked surprised.

"Jane needs a new lock on the back door," Harry replied, smiling angelically.

"Or perhaps it would help if I remembered not to tell you where the spare key is," Jane replied amusedly.

"Oh, you're no fun!"

_**Jane told the story about her parents.**_

"That's brutal," Tonks said, watching the girl in concern.

"That's Voldemort to you," she replied dryly.

_**She continued her story, telling how she'd spied on those Death Eaters until they could be arrested.**_

"Excuse me?!", Henry interrupted. Jane eyed him warily; she had deliberately left that part out. "Whose idea was that?!"

"Mine," she mumbled. "In fact, they refused so I told them that I'd either go back and tell them I was a spy, or they would have to help me. I was safe, I had a Portkey!"

"And what about mental health?" Tonks asked, frowning.

Jane kept quiet. Her mental health – that part should come up soon enough, and she didn't look forward to it.

_**In the memory, they saw a little Harry boarding the train, meeting Mrs. Weasley on the platform when he was wandering around. He politely asked her if there was anything else, he should do, as Jane had told him how to get onto the platform. Ron and Harry bonded over sweets, and the scenery quickly moved on to the Sorting. They heard the Hat say everything Harry had heard that day.**_

"Qualities of all Houses – that's remarkable," Hermione said. She had been sorted into Ravenclaw, after a long discussion with the Hat. It had wanted to put her in Gryffindor, saying that she was brave enough for it, but she hadn't dared to believe it.

_**The memory skipped to the letter Jane got, saying that the break-in in Gringotts had happened on the same day Harry had visited and that Hagrid had emptied the vault that day.**_

Tonks raised her eyebrows. "What a pure coincidence," she said sarcastically.

Jane looked lost in thoughts – other thoughts than the ones she was displaying.

_**They watched the first flying lesson, and Sirius grinned proudly when he saw that Harry's broom sprang into his hand immediately.**_

"That means you're a natural. Got that from your father – James was a Chaser for Gryffindor in our time," Sirius remarked, a misty look in his eyes.

_**The flying lesson continued with Neville falling off – Tonks winced – and groans came all around when Madame Hooch walked off with him. And what they had expected, did indeed happen: Malfoy made trouble. There were impressed faces everywhere when Harry showed his talent on the broom, catching the Remembrall.**_

"You know, he could give James a run for his money – and that's saying something," Remus said bemusedly. "And he also didn't know when to quit," he continued a little ruefully. Probably remembering the Patronus lessons – Jane could see Harry pushing himself to his limits and beyond.

Sirius nodded in agreement.

"Yes, Harry," Jane said sharply, "you stop BEFORE you're injured, you know. Or normal people do."

"I was never that badly injured," Harry protested.

"Do I need to remind you of second year?", Ron chimed in sardonically.

"That was Lockheart."

Jane spoke enough swear words to make a sailor blush.

_**The evening continued with the meeting of a certain Cerberus.**_

"Knew the good news couldn't last long," Lara said sadly.

"What in the world is _that_ doing there?", Remus asked aghast.

"Guarding a package," Tonks said thoughtfully. One look at the teens faces and she knew she was right.

"Well you described it perfectly," Jane said, looking slightly green, "'a giant dog, with three heads, an amazing amount of drool and saliva, yellowish fangs, thunderous growls; a dog that needs exercise and wouldn't be out of place in a haunted house', indeed!"

Snickers where heard all over the place, as had been her intention.

_**The next thing was the Halloween feast – Harry and Ron groaned at that. They heard Quirrell yell about a troll in the dungeons before fainting – Jane muttered another few choice word – and watched as the youngsters left for the bathroom. They saw Harry picking up some pipes from the ground.**_

"What in the world is your plan with that?!", Tonks asked, eyes wide.

"I didn't learn fencing for the looks of it," Harry replied sarcastically.

"Are you mad?!", Sirius shouted. "That – that- "

He seemed at loss of words. "How in the world did you beat it?", Remus asked bewildered.

"Used his strong points against him," Harry replied.

_**And indeed, they saw how Harry deflected a blow and let it land on the floor. The tiles broke, the club was stuck and Harry grabbed his chance, knocking it on the head on the same time Ron used a Levitating spell to drop the club on the troll's head.**_

"You know, most people bond over tea," Jane remarked feebly.

"Where's the fun in that?", Ron joked.

"And besides, you don't even drink tea!", Harry said.

"Then use sweets," Remus replied in a clipped, tense tone. "In any case, don't go fighting mountain trolls!"

Harry mumbled something that sounded suspiciously like 'I'll find another kind of troll then' which earned him a reproachful look from Remus. Sirius was still gasping for air in a manner reminiscent of a goldfish.

_**Jane looked at the second Quidditch match of her life in excitement – until someone tried to kill Harry. She had temporarily forgotten about that part, but sure enough, it was there: Harry's broom trashing around, until Harry was dangling in the air, one hand still on the broom. Luckily, he managed to climb on it and get to the ground.**_

"You actually managed to catch the Snitch with all _that_ happening?", Sirius exclaimed in disbelief.

Harry just shrugged.

"That's Harry to you," Jane, Lara, Ron and Hermione chorused.

_**The trip down memory's lane continued with the visit to Jane, where Harry explained he had two suspects for the attempt on his life, followed by the revelation of the Philosopher's Stone.**_

Hermione sighed. "And we didn't know to be suspicious of Quirrell. We might have said something in his presence. Keeping us in the dark – however noble the reasons – might have had a worse outcome."

Harry frowned. He didn't know what to say; back then, he'd wanted to keep them safe. Snape would notice that they suspected him of something and keep an eye on them. But now? He had experienced how annoying it was to be kept in the dark – with Sirius Black – and even then, he hadn't been fully in the dark, as Jane had told him. It wasn't right what he'd done. "Sorry, you're right. I should've told."

Ron eyed him. "Mate, we're friends, we're in this together, yeah?"

To which Harry nodded and Jane smiled.

_**The next Quidditch match was short, and they all cheered when Harry caught the snitch in record time. They followed Harry as he followed Quirrell and Snape, but nothing they said shed new light on the mystery. They watched as Harry and Hermione smuggled Norbert out of the castle, after a sad last moment between Hagrid and Norbert – "good thinking," said Tonks – and then their detention. It started with the unicorn blood – are they insane for letting you do that, you're first years! – and then, after a while, Harry was the one to find the unicorn.**_

"Uh… What in the world was that?", asked Tonks, as the hooded figure started drinking unicorn blood.

"It's a _who_, actually," Harry informed her pleasantly.

"Although that's a matter of opinion," Jane piped up.

"That's Voldemort?", Remus and Sirius exclaimed.

The adults watched on in surprise and fear.

_**Harry got out of the situation, thanks to Firenze. The next scene showed the return of the Invisibility Cloak, followed suit by Harry's revelation about how Hagrid acquired Norbert in the first place.**_

"How could I've have missed that?", Jane and Tonks asked on the same time.

"Right now, would be the time to tell a teacher," Remus supplied.

Harry looked at him grimly. "We tried."

_**Then, Harry's note followed:**_

_**Dear Jane,**_

_**I hope you'll forgive me for being short, but Voldemort knows how to get past Fluffy – he used the dragon egg for that. He now knows nearly all of it. We went to tell Dumbledore but he wasn't there, we told McGonagall, but she didn't believe us. We are out of options, Jane, and I can't let the mass murder of our parents and so many others, responsible for so many other deaths, come back to life and power. I know I probably won't make it, but I try to let the others survive. Be there for them, please?**_

_**Forever yours,**_

_**Harry James Potter**_

"Sweet lord," Sirius said. "If it's so dangerous, then you shouldn't be doing it!"

"I had to. Voldemort's return would have devastated to many lives. I had the opportunity to stop him; the adults refused to act. I knew Jane would come to my aid; I knew she might not be in time to safe me, but she would be able to help stop Voldemort. There were no options."

_**The scenery continued from Harry's point of view, with all the tasks – Jane was rather glad she'd never seen this before – followed by Harry going in the last room, alone. The brief conversation with Voldemort/Quirrell followed, ending with Harry losing conscience after fighting with Voldemort/Quirrell for so long. They followed Jane, as she ran as hard as she could, and found Harry on the same time as Dumbledore. They listened closely, as the state the Trio had been in was relied.**_

Several people looked pained and drained already, Jane noticed. _This is only first year! Wait until Aragog, and the Basilisk – oh, she hadn't told Henry that. Uh-oh._

_**But the problems weren't done yet: Henry informed Harry of the threat against him, in the person of Elias. **_

"Thankfully someone talks sense!", Remus and Jane exclaimed at the same time. Sirius burst out laughing.

"You don't need to come after me, Harry, there was a whole team looking for me!"

"Fat lot of good it did, didn't it?!", Harry snapped.

Jane remained silent, knowing that what had happened next was still a sore point for Harry.

_**They watched in horror as Harry discovered the death of the people guarding him, and Harry escaped the house – "good thinking", said Jane – and the following conversation about Jane's health after her rescue (if you're going to apologise one more time, I'll scream!). And then, the bomb was dropped.**_

"You two are cousins?!", Hermione and Ron said at the same time.

Harry and Jane shrugged. "We didn't want to make the other a target because of what one of us did or who he or she is."

_**They followed along as Harry and Ron couldn't get onto the platform, and Harry brought them to Jane's.**_

"'Get behind that tree?' I'm not in a habit of attacking your friends, last time I checked," Jane said lightly.

"You weren't supposed to be there, remember?"

_**Harry and Ron blended in with the other students – "of course, Hermione has seen us," Harry groaned – to the feast. They watched as Harry and Ron lied their way out of McGonagall's suspicions (thank you), and then, unfortunately, came the first DADA class of the year.**_

The moment Lockheart came in sight, Jane said every single curse word she knew – not that she knew a lot of them, but still.

"I'll admit he's an arrogant toe rag, but what has he done to you?", Remus asked suspiciously. Such sentiments were out of nature for Jane.

She made a face as if she swallowed a lemon. "Being his usual, _charming_, self," she replied, disgust evident in her voice. "I feel for you, having to clean up his shit."

Harry grinned. "Ah, I don't know, he was a source of comic relief!"

"Yeah, remember the Duelling Club?", Ron said enthusiastically.

Hermione burst in a fit of giggles, while Harry laughed outright.

_**The lesson continued with the pop quiz, and more importantly, the questions on it.**_

"I'm sure, next Dark Lord passing by, will be terrified by the knowledge that Lockheart's favourite colour is _lilac_," Remus remarked sarcastically.

"He'd write that down in a heartbeat," Harry informed him cheerfully.

"I'm sure. This is the person who catches ghouls with tea strainers," Jane replied sarcastically.

"Well, one never knows the mysteries of tea," Ron said, in his best professor Trelawney impression.

Harry snorted. "I do. I die every possible opportunity."

_**Lockheart then followed with the more practical part, which turned out to be a disaster.**_

"Now I know why you all looked so apprehensive at the thought of a practical lesson," Remus remarked, astonished.

"Oh, you haven't seen the worst of it," Ron said, grinning wildly, despite the elbow in his side – courtesy of Harry. Hermione burst in a fit of giggles again.

_**The next memory was Jane's, with the conversation about Lockheart.**_

"Yeah, you're right. I would've learned more from a Muggle trashcan," Harry said resignedly. "Although, mind you, I've learned to recognise a fraud."

_**The next memories where of Harry hearing voices –**_

"Should have figured it out sooner," Hermione muttered.

"Should've told me," Jane reminded Harry, who shrugged.

_**And then, Halloween. The Death Day party was watched with great interest, followed by the discovery of a certain petrified cat.**_

"You know, Harry", Lara said, "most people don't go running after voices who are talking about 'murder' and 'blood'."

"Harry does," Jane, Hermione and Ron said at the same time. Harry scowled.

_**They watched the discussion between Harry and Jane.**_

"You thought you'd done that, but had forgotten?!", Ron exclaimed. "You wouldn't. Never. And you could've talked with us about it!"

Harry sighed guiltily. He knew that; but still, something in him just wanted to protect his friends. Jane was… She just behaved like an adult, and he regarded her like that. It was unfair, both to her, as to his friends. "I'm sorry, Ron," he said tiredly. This year was the worst so far, even taken into account that last year, there was supposed to be a mass murderer after him…

_**Then, the Quidditch match followed. They all looked at it, happily, until a Bludger couldn't stop harassing Harry. When he ordered Fred and George to leave him to deal with it, many heads shook in exasperation.**_

"Yeah, because it's a good idea to fight it out with a thing that is designed to break bones while it's aiming specifically for you," Tonks said, shaking her head.

"Only Harry," Hermione sighed.

_**They saw Harry break his arm –**_

"Should've stayed in the air. I'd rather deal with the Bludger than with what found me on the ground," Harry muttered, distaste in his voice.

_**And they watched as the bones in Harry's arm where vanished.**_

"'That can happen?!'", Henry exclaimed. "That's not a common side effect is something, it's only because this one is a bumbling buffoon!"

_**Then, Dobby's visit in the Hospital Wing ("nice job, Dobby," said several people sarcastically). Followed by Hermione's announcement of Polyjuice Potion. And then, Harry asked Jane for the ingredients of Polyjuice Potion. Followed by the revelation he was going to brew it. And a discussion whether he was guilty of Quirrell's death.**_

"She's right, Harry", Sirius said solemnly. Harry just nodded.

_**They laughed at Harry imitating a werewolf – **_

"I can't determine whether this was the silliest – zapping a werewolf – or strapping the ghoul with a tea strainer," Harry said thoughtfully. Remus looked like he was getting a headache.

_**They saw Harry reacting badly to the news they thought he was the Heir of Slytherin, after being outed as a Parselmouth ("You just can't catch a break, can you?", Tonks said). Then the attacks, and the following conversation with Jane.**_

"I'm glad you confided in someone," Hermione said rather sharply.

"It's not the ability or certain traits that turn you evil," Sirius said frowning, "it's what you choose to do with it."

Harry smiled, while Jane laughed outright. Sirius understood why, when she said the same to Harry not much later.

_**They had a rare good laugh at the Duelling Club ("Ah, Lockheart… Couldn't Snape have done some more permanent damage?", Jane smirked). But the laughs vanished the moment the Polyjuice Potion was ready, and they went into the dorms (Well done echoed through the room). When they found nothing, there were some sighs. Hermione turned out to have changed in a cat, and several people winced in sympathy. They looked downright scandalized at Hermione keeping Lockheart's get-well card under her pillow ("I knew they'd make fun of me!"). Harry writing to the diary wasn't well received ("that could've been dangerous!", Tonks said. "It was," Harry replied.) With the next Quidditch match approaching, only Remus and Sirius cheered – and they understood why when McGonagall called it off.**_

Harry had a pained expression on his face. This was horrendous; Hermione, his friend, could've died, just because she knew him. Because he had exposed her to danger. Because he couldn't keep her safe. Why hadn't he insisted on someone going with her to the library? Why hadn't he asked more questions, when she left? Then Ginny wouldn't have been dragged into the Chamber… Forced to write her own goodbye on the wall, in blood. She wouldn't have nearly died; Jane and Ron would've been safe. If-

"Stop it," Jane said sharply. He looked at her questioningly. "I know what you're thinking, but it's not true. Don't go down that road, Harry; there's nothing to find at the end of it."

The others eyed them curiously, but Jane shook her head.

_**They followed along, as Harry was diagnosed with shock, and Ron went back alone ("shouldn't have done that, Ron," Harry said). Mouths fell open at the revelation that Hagrid had been sent to Azkaban as a 'precaution' ("He certainly didn't clear that with Amelia," Tonks said angrily). Then, Harry and Ron decided to follow the spiders in the Forbidden Forest. They walked and walked, went off track, and finally found the spiders' den.**_

"This is frightening to me, and I'm not even scared of spiders," Lara remarked.

"But watch, want to bet that Harry is just going to chat with the lot of them, calmly?", Jane said sarcastically.

Harry pouted. "Well, I don't know, Jane, I didn't want to offend them, either."

"Perhaps you shouldn't have gone to find them, then," Remus replied, frowning. Sirius was a bit in shock.

"We had to do something. I couldn't shake the suspicion… Well, it'll come up. We'll talk then," Harry said, frowning. And his suspicion had been correct.

_**Aragog explained that he and his family feared that what was in the castle, that he had been Hagrid's pet – only Hagrid, several people said – and that he had never killed someone; ending with the notion that Harry and Ron would be dinner. They saw Harry casually slit his hand in his pocket during the conversation, grabbing Ron with the other and, when Aragog had finished his talk, activate the Portkey. Not much later, Jane stepped out of the Floo, and they talked through what had happened. They realised Moaning Myrtle was the one who had died then fifty years ago; they found out about the Basilisk.**_

"Hang on," said a pale Remus, "that's the – that's in the castle? In the Chamber of Secrets? A Basilisk?"

"What in the world is _that_?", Sirius asked, slightly wary.

"A poisonous snake that can kill with a look. But I don't understand how it can be, as no one has died…"

"Watch and learn, Remus," Henry said in grim satisfaction. "Those three always find out things no one did – even the adults."

_**They stared in shock as Harry found an explication to the point Remus had just raised. Then, more shock followed when Harry thought the attacks where because of him.**_

"That's… Wow, that sucks," Tonks said, eyes wide.

"That's my life to you," Harry replied grimly.

"Why are you not telling anyone?", Remus said.

"We would. We tried. Something came in between," Harry said evasively. Next to him, Ron stiffened.

"I don't want to know…", Sirius groaned.

"Neither did I," Harry said so softly only Jane and Remus heard him.

_**When the abduction of Ginny came up, gasps where heard. Then, after sending a letter to Jane, they went to tell Lockheart.**_

"Why are you going to that bumbling buffoon?", Remus asked bewildered.

"Because he would not refuse to go there, if we flat out told him where he needed to be. Would be bad for his good name," Harry said.

"And what good would he do?", Sirius asked, astonished.

"The only good he had done is serve as a bait," Jane snapped, before cursing at the top of her lungs.

"Jeez, he really made you angry," Tonks said, wide-eyed.

"Oh, believe me, before this year's over, you'll be screaming for his head," Jane said grimly.

_**And indeed, as they talked to Lockheart, his crazy schemes to sell books became clear.**_

"I don't like that he's telling you all this," Remus muttered.

_**He was proven correct when Lockheart tried to obliviate them, but was disarmed before he would finish his sentence.**_

"That's my Godson," Sirius said happily.

"That's my star pupil in Defence," Remus said at the same moment, in the same way.

"Way to go, cousin!", Lara amended.

Harry, however, remained solemn, remembering what happened after that.

_**They watched as the company reached Myrtle's bathroom, and asked her how she had died. They found the entrance, and Harry, Ron and Lockheart went down the pipeline. ("Good work, letting the idiot go first", Tonks said admiringly). But then, things went wrong. Lockheart took Ron's wand, but Harry threw in his shield (nice work echoed from several people). The spell hit the ceiling, and it caved in. None of them where hit but Lockheart, and after giving medical advice to Ron (sound advice, according to Henry), Harry left. Then, Jane revealed herself and they started to make a plan. After they had entered the last room and had found Ginny, Riddle made himself known.**_

"How hasn't he changed?! It's been fifty years!", Tonks exclaimed.

Harry and Jane looked at each other, and shrugged. "Can't explain," they said at the same time. It was way too complicated

_**The exchange between Riddle and Harry was rather short.**_

"Why are you baiting him into killing you?", Ron asked incredulously. He'd seen Harry do some pretty dangerous things, but this topped most of them, if not all.

"Because he was growing stronger, while I didn't. Also, it would provide Ginny with the best chance to survive."

"And your survival?", Hermione asked shrewdly.

Harry remained silent. He knew he could give her no answer she would like to hear; but the truth was that he'd thought it of secondary importance.

_**And then they heard the sounds Riddle made.**_

"Is he- ", Sirius started weakly.

"Calling the Basilisk?", Remus finished.

"Sadly," Jane and Harry chorused. Jane repressed a shiver.

_**They watched as Jane fired her first shots in fast succession at the Basilisk, only to find the arrows where not penetrating the skin. There were many impressed shouts at her shouting; she'd have to do it more or the less blindly, and fast after each other. Riddle shouted to show yourself, but they all snorted at that – as if. There were cheers all around, when Fawkes – who had arrived just before the fight – took out an eye, and Jane's last arrow took out another.**_

"Well, look at that, that evens the odds a bit," Harry said with forced cheer.

Jane snorted. "Yeah, there just the deadly poison left."

"Aren't you a bright little ray of sunshine?", Harry asked rhetorically.

"Those where impressive shots," Tonks said, "I wonder, should we train Aurors with that?"

Jane shrugged. "It takes several years of training, to be able to do this. But in theory, you could add for example exploding potion on the arrowhead, so… Maybe."

_**And then, finally, the fight was over. Cheers all around, until-**_

"YOU GOT BITTEN BY A BASILISK?", Ron bellowed.

Harry flinched sharply, muttering something that sounded like 'not a big deal' and 'no fuss'.

"You could've died," Remus said, a hysterical note in his voice.

"Well, yeah, but I didn't," Harry said simply, "Fawkes healed me and then I ended that blasted diary."

_Well yes, Jane thought, 'then I ended that diary', as if it was a simple light switch, he had had to press!_

_**In horror, they watched as Jane ran to Harry, and caught him.**_

"Couldn't you do something?", Hermione asked Jane.

"No, the venom had spread to fast. I suspect it caught an artery, or maybe the venom just spreads fast – but it was too late. I felt it the moment I caught him; all I could do was take away pain," Jane sounded utterly exhausted. The 'broadcasting' of memories, and this memory in particular, had taken their toll.

_**They heard Jane reassuring Harry, and Riddle gloat (still wish I could Silence him, right then and there). They heard him ask to safe Ginny (noble git, Ron muttered), to be there for Ron and Hermione. They saw Fawkes, crying, and then, they heard Harry's tone change. As Jane ran for Ginny, Harry ducked behind a pillar to dodge curses. They saw him giving Jane and idea, but no one understood – until she threw the book, and Harry threw the fang that had been embedded in his arm in it. Cheers all around, of course.**_

_**Until they realised Ginny didn't have a pulse.**_

"What on earth does that mean?", Ron blurted out.

"It means that her heart is not beating, not contracting in an effective way. It means the blood doesn't get around as well. Muggles and Magics have a way of coping with that, hoping to start the heart again. It's called CPR, and it's called CPR, and _you_ compress the heart, making it 'beat', in the hope that it starts beating again," Jane explained swiftly. "What I'm doing here is a combination of Muggle and Wizards techniques, proven to be efficient."

"But… Wasn't she dead, then?", Ron asked confused.

"Technically, in some way, yes," Jane replied, "but not… As long as this doesn't go on to long, and CPR is performed fast enough, there's hope she'll recover."

"What are you waiting for, actually?", Remus asked.

"Well… Indeed, St.-Mungo's would've been the best option – but it would take too long. Same with the Hospital Wing. She needed to stabilize, because we couldn't bring her up the pipe while doing CPR, and twenty minutes for help to arrive is too long. Same with St.-Mungo's."

"Then how did you safe her?", Ron asked incredulously.

_**They watched as Jane healed Ginny. Cheers where heard again, until-**_

"Why are you having a nosebleed and blood coming out of your eyes?", Ron asked incredulously.

"Because I've gone too far. Too much energy," Jane replied. She shrugs. "I didn't have the fine control I've got now."

_**They watched as Jane disappeared with her Portkey, and the small party made it back home safely. Relief swept through the room as they realised Jane had healed herself; and both where fine.**_

"You know," Lara weakly said, "I think our next year will be exciting…"

"Are we ready for some parts of last year?", Jane asked quickly.

No one objected, and she was glad. She wanted this behind them, as it was almost 4 P.M.; they hadn't even stopped for lunch, she realised. _Then we'll have dinner earlier, that's alright._

_**The curses where not far away, when Aunt Marge made her entrance, alongside some memories of her earlier visits. They saw Harry lose it and blow her up, followed by Harry running to Jane and Jane explaining that Sirius supposedly wanted his head.**_

"That explains a lot," Remus said, "why you were so fast to believe us; you already suspected it."

"And there Harry goes again, asking the important question: why now?", Tonks said, impressed.

_**After the travel to Hogwarts, they saw Harry running towards Jane, whom he told about the search of the train.**_

"Yeah, no, I should've known it, Fudge and good thought, they don't get along", Jane muttered.

"Why did you ask whether someone can lose the ability to conjure a Patronus?", Lupin asked bewildered.

"If it were possible, this would've been the perfect opportunity to have me murdered. After everything that had happened…"

Remus looked like he didn't want to think like that.

_**They watched as, on Halloween, Harry told Jane Remus was a werewolf.**_

"I sort of remembered something of you spying… And then, you're Boggart, and being ill around full moon. One of the books on the war was about werewolves and had the potion in it, so I recognised it," Harry answered the unspoken question in Remus eyes.

And then, everything went wrong.

Jane lost control, being tired as she was – and a memory, triggered by what she'd heard, resurfaced, being 'broadcast' to all the other.

_**A small Jane, by the looks of it six or something like that, was rummaging through a desk. She didn't realise someone entered, until that person spoke: "Well? What are we doing here, Asset?"**_

_**She stiffened. Then, she looked up. "I'm searching proof; I'll put you behind bars."**_

_**The other person smiled evilly. "Is that so, little ungrateful piece of dragon dung? We'll see about that."**_

_**And with that, Jane was bound. All Death Eaters gathered, put on their masks, and discussed what they should do with her. She couldn't hear a thing, but she knew it would be over by tonight.**_

_**They seemed to have made up their mind, they approached and all uttered cutting charms. They left deep marks in her skin, and one of them hauled her off. He brought her to a nearby shed, owned by the neighbours, and threw her inside…**_

_**Once inside, she noticed how hot it was. The sun had been burning on the roof for a while, and the shed had heated up accordingly. She lied there, gasping in pain as the stench of blood filled the room…**_

_**That night, she was still there, as she saw the moon rising. And she knew, that the raid would start soon. How long, before they thought about her? How long before they found her? She was exhausted, her throat was dry, the pain was immense…**_

_**And then, a party approached. Jane heard the key turning in the rusty lock, saw people come in…**_

_**People she knew to be werewolves. It was a full moon. She couldn't run, she couldn't hide. There was no way she could defend herself…**_

_**And as the moon reached its highest point, the werewolves changed, and Jane trembled with fear as she saw them, growling sniffing in the stench of blood in their noses. She saw them ready themselves to attack, but then –**_

_**A shield. She had produced a shield, she held them off, but she knew it wouldn't be long as the wolves threw themselves against the shield…**_

And then the memory stopped. Jane trembled, because of what she'd had relived and the effort of sharing her thoughts with all those people present. It had caused her to lose control, and when the word 'werewolf' had triggered a memory, she hadn't been able to keep it at bay.

"Jane…", she heard Harry say, catching her as she swayed. Tears where burning in her eyes, because she didn't deserve it, she had no right, none at all…

"Jane, no one is mad at you," he whispered in her ear. "It's not your fault. Shh, it's alright." Keeping her in a tight embrace, seated on the floor of her kitchen, tears started to escape her eyes. She leaned into him, and he rocked her back and forth. "No one holds it against you," he kept whispering. Her father and sister joined them on the floor – although, technically, Henry wasn't her father… But sometimes, it just felt right to call him that.

It took twenty minutes, but finally she had calmed down enough, and she broke free. Whipping her eyes, she cleared her throat. "Sorry about that."

"Jane, Remus doesn't blame you for your initial reaction," Harry said softly, guessing how she felt like always.

"Of course not," Remus said, from the far edge of the room. He walked closer, carefully; and finally, it clicked inside Jane's head: he thought she was afraid of him.

"I'm glad," Jane whispered. "Give me a moment," she said, leaving the room for a moment. She didn't want to see the pitying looks she was probably getting.

It took her ten minutes to regain her composure. Upon entering the room, Henry locked eyes with her. "Do you want to talk about it?", he asked.

And that was the question, she had been trying to answer. Did she? Now it was out in the open, anyway…

"Yes," she replied. Closing her eyes, she sat down in her chair. Her kitchen had never been that silent before. "As was the plan, the werewolves kept attacking. But my shield held it, unbelievable enough. I woke before them, the next morning. I broke a window, and ran off. I made as much racket as I could, hoping to draw attention, hoping to be safe from them. They couldn't kill me under the nose of a bunch of bystanders. I managed to reach the next village after an hour. By pure coincidence, the couple whose door I nearly broke by knocking on it, was – by a lucky coincidence – magical. They reached out to the DMLE, and went to keep the werewolves – now human – locked up. As turned out later, when they had raided the place, those idiots had said that I'd ran off. Although the DMLE knew it to be wrong, no one talked. They never thought that I was within a few feet's distance."

Jane took a deep breath, while everyone was silent. "Sorry for judging so fast, Remus. If anything, I now know that you are very unlike them."

Remus nodded at her. "I understand, Jane. There are no hard feelings," he replied, smiling lightly.

"Shall we continue?", Harry asked brightly.

_**They watched as Jane recounted what they had just seen in person. They saw the break in at Halloween.**_

"That was actually smart," Harry remarked, trying to diffuse the tension, "to wait until we would all be out. And then to attack Peter."

"Only the Fat Lady was eh rather drunk, and called me names. She refused to open without the password, off course, and then I had to make sure she ran, in order to be able to run myself," Sirius said.

_**They watched in dismay as professor McGonagall tried to pull Harry of the team, because Sirius was after him – Sirius looked guilty – but luckily, Harry argued and won. A few people started muttering about gossiping PM's, when Harry heard Fudge talking about Sirius in the Three Broomsticks. After that, the debacle with the Firebolt followed.**_

"Hermione, it wasn't your place to decide this – and he's right, you should've talked to him first," Lara said, frowning.

Harry quickly apologised, quickly, for what he had said.

_**Next up was the Hogsmeade debacle, and Harry quietly apologised for taking such risks. The bad news continued with Buckbeak's case being lost. During the confrontation in the Shrieking Shack, no one said much. When Harry repelled the Dementors, however, they spontaneously applauded. The scene after Sirius woke up made Lara's jaw fall open.**_

"You encouraged Harry to smuggle Sirius out?", Lara said.

"So, I did," Jane said evenly.

_**What followed, was a recount of Sirius' trial, followed by great applause when he was declared innocent. Jane's testimony was met with astonishment from Ron and Hermione, because they had never known that Death Eaters could be quite so cruel.**_

* * *

**Harry POV, a day later**

No one had said much, after all memories had been viewed. He'd expected a lot of comments from Sirius and Remus, but neither had said much, certainly not in regards of what he had done. He wondered how they felt; where they proud, or angry, or did they simply want to abandon him? Trouble did seem to always find him, no matter what. As unfair as it was, Harry had come to accept it – but now, he wondered what would come…

That constant, gnawing worry, had prevented him from sleeping much, last night – or tonight, as it was only five o'clock. Harry had given up trying to sleep, after last attempt had only delivered him a nightmare about Quirrell's death. He gave frustrated sigh; he had thought everything would just be well after Sirius' trial, but the truth was that he still didn't know what to expect. Combine with that the dream he'd had a week ago – about Wormtail and Voldemort plotting his death – and the fact that the Muggle in said dream still was nowhere to be found (Jane had said she would look into it, but how he had no idea); nothing seemed to work like he wanted.

_What he needed now, was something to relieve stress_, Harry thought. But he wasn't cleared by Henry to go flying yet, especially not after the attack on Sirius – or him. That was another thing; his assailants might be dead, but someone had ordered them around, before vanishing without a trace. He sighed again. _Screw it, I'm fine!, _he thought. He snuck out of the house with ease, taking his broom with him. There was a clearing, close by the woods that surrounded their respective houses, and that was where Harry was headed. He knew that no one could see them.

The feeling when he mounted and took off, was indescribable. It was the same freedom and joy he always felt, combined with a sense of relief. Up here, he didn't have to worry about people trying to kill him. He flew a lap around the trees, racing with some owl, and laughed out loud as he won. He went into a dive, pulling up right in time in a way reminiscent of Krum on the WC. He grinned with pleasure, as he pulled that one off. He raced through a few branches of trees as fast as he could – or rather, dared, because if he injured himself, he would have to explain it somehow – and was positively ecstatic when he came out of a dive. He dove again, brushing the grass with his toes, raised again and stood on his broomstick – and nearly fell off.

Because in the shadow of an oak, stood Remus and Sirius; and they didn't look happy. While he was looking at them, one of them made gesture to the ground, and Harry swallowed. He wondered what his punishment would be; with the Dursley's, it could be starvation, a beating, or twice – sometimes even trice – as much chores to do. Harry had never even been scolded by his current guardians, and their faces where unreadable when he landed. He noted, once again, that Remus kept his distance, when Sirius approached; he was probably still in I'm-to-dangerous-to-have-friends-mode. He took a good look at Sirius' face and swallowed. _Maybe it wasn't such a good idea after all._

"Go to your room, Harry," Sirius said in a carefully neutral tone.

Harry swallowed, and averted his gaze while nodding.

"May I borrow him for a few minutes?", a soft voice behind him asked. _Jane._

Sirius must have nodded, because she laid a hand on his arm, steering him away from where Remus had now joined Sirius.

"What are you doing?", she asked, raising an eyebrow. "Disregarding Henry's orders is not like you, Harry."

Glancing to where Sirius and Remus where still talking, he shrugged: "Maybe I was just being a teenager."

Jane stared at him. "If that's going to be your excuse to them, think harder. They won't buy it, Harry. You and I both know what's going on. You should talk to them."

"I don't want to bother them unnecessarily. It might be nothing."

"You're not bothering them, Harry; you voice something that concerns you; and, as such, concerns your guardians as well."

Harry sighed and averted his gaze. "It's probably nothing. I'm overreacting."

"Be that as it may, Harry, but like I said, _it concerns you, thus it concerns them_. If it where me, you would be one of the first people to tell me to talk to Henry."

Harry sighed again. "I know, but I'm nearly and adult- "

"So is Lara. But this is too serious- "

"Leave my godfather out of it," Harry joked. Then he turned sober again. "I need to go, Jane," and he left her behind.

If, at that point, he had looked behind, he would've seen Remus walking over to Jane. He would've heard that Remus asked Jane what was going on, and he would've heard that Jane replied he needed to talk to Harry, urgently. But Harry didn't look behind.

* * *

**Harry's POV, half an hour later**

It turned out that he'd had the worst of luck: Henry had seen him walking out of the house with his broom, after he'd come back from a late-night shift. And he was none too happy.

"I tell you not to fly for a reason, Harry," Henry scolded, frowning, "I know it's your outlet, but still."

Harry bowed his head, unable to look Henry in the eye. He wondered if the man knew of his nightmare, and then discarded the thought again. Jane and he had agreed not to talk about it. She wouldn't disrespect his explicit wishes on that, not without a very good reason.

"That was dangerous, Harry," Sirius amends.

Harry remains silent.

"Why where you flying, anyway?", Henry asks again.

Harry swallowed. He could tell the truth now, but… _It's probably nothing. That vision might just be a nightmare… As long as we don't find the Muggle in it dead, there's no proof, and no reason to worry them…_ "Just needed to clear my thoughts," he muttered softly.

"It was reckless," Remus scolded.

And Harry's temper flared. He wasn't in the best of moods to begin with, hence why he flew in the first place, but that did the trick. "And you would know, wouldn't you?", Harry asked sarcastically. The feeling of triumph he'd expected didn't come, when he saw Remus flinch. "Sorry," he muttered, eyes downcast again.

He saw them all exchanging a glance. Then, Sirius cleared his throat. "You're going to cook the meals, sweep the floor and do the dishes every day before going to Hogwarts. On top of that, you're going to do the laundry. Other than the chores we give you, you are to remain inside. You're grounded until you go to Hogwarts."

That was only in less than a week, so he came of rather lightly. He just nodded and went upstairs, to his room. Just before shutting the door, he heard talking softly, coming from downstairs. He hesitated, then heard his name and went closer so he could hear what was said.

"It's not like him, to disregard me like that," Henry was saying.

"Neither is snapping like that," Remus added.

"Have you tied talking to Jane?", Sirius asked.

"Yeah. I've got the impression she's hiding something because Harry told her so, but she's against it. It sounded like she thinks that's why he went flying," Henry sighed. "She just doesn't talk to me about it. Whatever it is, she's working harder again. So, it's either got to do with her work, or distressed her."

"Why don't you pressure her a bit more?", Sirius said, sounding annoyed. "I hate being in the dark. Certainly, when it's got to be serious."

"Harry goes to Jane, because she doesn't talk about it when he asks that. Unless, of course, she deems it more dangerous to continue the silence then to talk. If we pressure her into talking, who will Harry go to next?", Henry asked rhetorically.

There was silence, then-

"Let's wait it out for a bit," Remus said, "maybe he'll come round, anyway."

Harry threaded back to his room on his toes, and shut the door silently.

"_Harry?", Jane thought._

"_Yeah, I'm here – but, where are you?", he asked mentally. He could sense she wasn't on the premises anymore._

"_I realised that one of the paintings you saw on the wall, was quite famous. In your vision, on the wall? I tracked down the owner."_ The image of a large villa, with a slightly wild garden around it, filled his head. "_I'm here now._"

"_What's the plan?", Harry asked her._

"_Going to knock and see who opens the door."_ After doing so, no one answered. Walking around the house, she knocked on the backdoor – and it swayed open in absolute silence.

"_That's not good. Wait for back-up, Jane," Harry asked her._

_He felt her disagreeing, and groaned when she walked in. She drew her gun – since when did she have one with her? – and walked through the house, as silent as she could. There was no one downstairs, only cobwebs and dust. She took the stairs, where there was a trace in the dust, and reached the first room._

"_That's the room I've seen Voldemort and Wormtail in," Harry tells her softly._

"_Nobody home now," she replied, walking towards the fire. "Cold – they haven't been here tonight, at least."_

"_Lucky for you!", he snapped._

_She walked back, downstairs, to the building adjacent to the villa. It was a small building, and next to the fire stood a kettle. "Cold, too," she said, "this one hasn't left yesterday, either."_

_She rummaged through shelves. "His name was – or is – Frank Bryce. I'll see if someone knows where he has gone in the village."_

She broke contact, and Harry was alone in his room again. He slid down the wall, rubbing his tired eyes. He had hoped that his dream had been nothing but that – a simple dream. But now? The house he'd dreamed about existed, the person dying in it had gone missing. He'd clearly seen the trace in the dust on the stairs, exactly where the snake had slithered over the ground. It was too much to be a coincidence.

And now he knew why the fact that someone was – again – trying to kill him, frightened him so bad.

Because now, Jane would be in the middle of it, too.

* * *

**Woohoo, here it is, chapter 26. I've got a lot of new ideas, and one of them is the reason why I'm drawing out the summer between third and fourth year another bit longer… I know, it's been ages since we've been at Hogwarts. Luckily, we'll make it next chapter!**

**Two IMPORTANT notes on the CONTENT OF THIS CHAPTER:**

**One, I needed this little scene about finding Frank Bryce for future purposes.  
**

**Second: **_**Because now, Jane would be in the middle of it, too.**_** As a clarification: of course, Ron and Hermione have been with Harry, in the face of danger. He tried to protect them, by hiding things from them. Problem is, that tactic won't work with Jane. Second, if Voldemort's attention is focussed on Harry, he'll eventually wonder who exactly Jane is; Harry's afraid that he'll find out who Jane really is. I've hinted at it multiple times, but she knows the weak and strong points of the Death Eaters; meaning she can help think of a strategy to render their strong points less useful, or exploit their weak points. In other words, Jane might beat Harry to the number one of Voldemort's hitlist.**

**On that cheery note, I'll upload next chapter – hopefully – in two weeks, possibly somewhat longer. Uni started again – do I need to say more? I'm drowning in work already. But I'll get this finished!**


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